Cyborgs Don't Cry?
by Katy Rain Muhle
Summary: Set in the future. Trunks has returned to his original timeline to set things right and destroy the androids, but how easy can that really be? Who are the real villains and what exactly is Earth's fate? Read and find out. A different take on the Mirai Trunks and 18 relationship.
1. Not good enough

Trunks stepped out of the time capsule. Looking around the surrounding area only succeeded to confirm the obvious, the androids were still reeking havoc. The burnt vegetation and littered buildings of a deserted city asserted the severe predicament that Earth was under. He entertained thoughts of moments prior to the current - where he ascended his original Saiyan status, assisted in stopping the androids of the past in order to rewrite the future, falling victim to Cell and his games. A lot of things had been done, a lot of lives had been at stake in that period.

Although he had endeavored to change his future, he realized, too late in his opinion, of how time travel and dimension specifically worked. He could change a future but not his, his future had already been written and it had been too late to bring about change. However, that did not stop him from pursuing the destruction of the then androids, and subsequently Cell as well.

He had learned a lot from Goku; from the young Gohan; from his father. They influenced him in ways more than this bleak time period ever could. He would have loved to live among them, in peace, but this was his home and he certainly knew that.

He raised a hand and balled it into a fist. He could feel the power radiating within, imploring for swift release. This was not just his Saiyan heritage screaming for freedom, it was the addition of the power of justice; of righteous spite - all aimed at the androids.

Trunks slowly paused as he felt the wind caress his cheek - so gently, but could easily turn dangerous. Feeling the air brush past his form, he closed his eyes, silently connecting to the phenomenon. He felt a relation to the wind, so soft, but forced to follow a predetermined route, forced to change intensity at the whim of fate. He was a kind man who was forced into a world that held despair, a harsh reality that was filled with loss and sorrow. He will never forget when he found Gohan's battered corpse.

For so long all the future could hold on to was hope, hope for a brighter tomorrow, and that would finally be realized.

"I'm stronger than them now." The androids he faced in the past were noticeably stronger than the androids of his present, something he was going to take full advantage of.

Trunks looked at the horizon. It did not matter what level he was on in power, he still held a somewhat disadvantage, he could not hope to sense the androids. Thanks to their design by the deranged Dr Gero, the androids were untraceable...

"For now." It would not be long before they made themselves known, unfortunately, it would be at the cost of the innocent. Trunks furrowed his brows, significantly tightening his grim determination. He could not waste time waiting in just one place, discovery would only be made with effort.

He sealed his time capsule and swiftly blasted into the air, heading in search for his mortal enemies.

"God, 17! Will you ever leave it be?" Android 18 spat bitterly, right in her twin brother's face.

"What? The fact that you think this guys is cute?" Android 17 said indifferently as he held a human boy by the scruff of his shirt.

The boy had not uttered a word and continued to tremble in fear.

The androids were in Yellow Reaf City, a place they had already laid waste to, however, they had not been as thorough to ridding the place of humans. Upon passing over the past conquest, they had noticed that a few humans were indeed alive and trying to thrive, as much as they could. Now, they could not just let people go free, it would give the wrong impression on their endeavor for destruction.

"Yes, just let the boy down, will ya? I mean look at him, his close to pissing himself," 18 said evenly.

17's nose scrunched in disgust. "Ew, don't think you're gonna pee on me buddy. I just got these pants." 17 levelled a half-hearted glare to the captive, subsequantly making the situation worse.

"Oh, give me that," 18 said as she took the boy from her brother's grasp, "Get out of here, kid."

"Yeah, since my sister finds you cute then I'm feeling kind of lenient today, so scram," 17 ordered.

The boy did as told and started to run for dear life.

17 looked on in amusement as he raised a hand and pointed a finger in the boy's direction, "I love the part when they think they got a chance."

"Just get it over with. I saw a mall a few blocks from here." 18 said.

"Still interested in that, sis? I swear, you're becoming more annoying everyday with all your shopping."

"Bite me," 18 retorted.

"No way, that's gross," 17 jabbed with a smirk. He returned his gaze to racing child and powered up minuscule amount of ki, creating an azure orb around his finger. The shot was fast and unstoppable. The boy's body fell to the ground in a dull thud, lifeless to the world.

17 harumphed with a scowl. "This is just getting too easy. What ever happened to that guy, what's his name, Tronks?"

"Who, Trunks? Beats me, maybe he finally got it into his head that he can't beat us, and now he's crying himself to death."

"Poor, baby," 17 mocked, "we should really pay him a visit one of these days, you know, for all times sake."

"You can do that if you want- "18 looked to her side- "I'm going shopping."

Before 17 could say anything more, he spotted a human from the corner of his eye. He smirked complacently as he realized that there was one more target for fun. He quickly put a hand up in order to get 18's attention, intentionally gaining the assiduity of the prospective victim as well.

"18," 17 called dramatically, "I think we missed one." He made sure not to look too obvious for both his sister and mark.

"Where?" 18 asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm not sure, but maybe if we looked closely, we can find them."

18 knew from prior knowledge that 17 was a horrible actor, from his dramatic speeches, to his easily construe signals. She looked to the intended direction and immediately spotted the culprit, or at least a mop of hair. She stomped to the location and yanked the person by the hair.

"Do you have any idea how much of my time you're wasting?" 18 demanded of a woman.

"Please, don't hurt me. I'll do anything you ask, just please let me live!"

"They always do that. Come on, have some backbone. If you're gonna die, don't you want it to be with your head held high?" 17 said.

The woman only squirmed, a look of agony plainly written on her face.

18 turned her attention away from the woman and spotted something behind her.

"Eh...17? This woman has a baby," 18 said with a frown, looking at an infant enclosed by a blue blanket.

"Oh, so that's your desperate reason for living, to take care of your child, right? Well don't you worry, where you're going there won't be a need to take care of anyone. No useless responsibility like that," 17 informed.

"No, please! I beg you, spare us!"

"That's what we're doing lady," 17 said as he raised a hand and aimed a ki blast at both the woman and the baby.

"Hey, at least give 'em a chance to get outta here, she's gotta a baby, 17." 18 stated.

"Don't matter to me," 17 said, putting even more power into his attack. "I'd move if I were you, 18."

18 huffed and glared at her brother, "You idiot."

"Only for you, sis," 17 replied.

"Someone please help me! Someone please help!" the woman screeched in fear.

"Oh, great, now look what you did." 18 said, rolling her eyes.

"She'll be quiet soon enough," 17 said and fixed the woman with a wicked grin, "Who could possibly help you?. There's no possible match for us in this universe."

"I wouldn't go that far."

The androids whirled to the voice, seeing a man with lavender hair and a sword on his back. For a moment they did not recognize him, but upon noticing his attire they soon pieced the puzzle together.

"Huh... Tronks? Something's different about you, is it your hair?" 17 carelessly questioned.

"Yeah, I kinda got it extended, I heard girls like that."

"Really? What do you think, sis? Do you like Tronks' new hair do?"

"You gotta be kidding me. The last time we faced you you were just a shrimp. What kind of growth spurts do Saiyans go through anyway?" 18 asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Growth spurts? Remember Vegeta, that guy was short to the end," 17 said.

"Enough of these games! Get away from her," Trunks ordered.

"Ho, ho, ho, what do we have here?" 17 looked at the woman that Trunk's demanded release. "Does she mean something to you?" 17 asked.

"Yes, among every other person on this planet. Now, get away from her. I won't say it again." Trunks had made sure not to sway his vision from the monsters for even a split second, that would be all that it meant between life and death for the woman.

Both 17 and 18 laughed in unison.

"Is this guy for real?" 18 laughed out and continued, "When did you get the balls? Just because you have nice body doesn't make you any less a shrimp."

"Oh no, my sis just complimented a kid. I didn't know you were that desperate, 18," 17 playfully said.

18's jaw tightened and she glared, "You prick!"

"What, I ca-" 17's statement was cut off with a powerful punch that sent him flying into nearby debris.

18 looked on in amusement as her brother hit a telephone pole.

Trunks relaxed the hand that had delivered the blow and focused his attention back on the woman in need.

"Now, the woman."

"Tch. If you thi-" before 18 could finish her statement, Trunks disappeared, and 18 looked to her side. She - shockingly - realized that the woman and the baby were also gone. She hurriedly tried to pinpoint their whereabouts, but upon trying to locate them she was surprised with the lack of ki. It was either Trunks was too weak to locate - which by now was highly unlikely - or he could conceal his ki well.

It did not take long for 17 to return. Plastering an annoyed, he made sure to ignore the complacent smirk his sister was sporting. "What a lucky shot. I'll let him get away with that one."

"I don't know, looked pretty convincing to me," 18 said.

"Whatever... Where is he?"

"Right here." Both androids looked up, above them was the cold azure eyes of Trunks Briefs.

"Be lucky I gave you that punch for free."

"Really? I'm so flattered," Trunks said in mock glee.

"Yep, but no more Mr Nice guy. Time to teach you another lesson," 17 said.

"Actually," Trunks looked at his watch before continuing, "I haven't seen my mom in a while and I was hoping to make this quick."

"Oh, I'll give you quick," 17 growled and flew to Trunks at high speed. He cocked his fist back and socked the Demi-saiyan square in the jaw, however, instead of reeling, Trunks did not move an inch.

"My turn," Trunks said and delivered a devastating fist to 17's abdomen, causing the android to hit the ground and create a crater.

18's mouth dropped. Something seemed so...wrong. If 17 was indeed playing around then he was doing a good job in acting like a wounded puppy.

17 shot from the crater and fired a large quantity of ki blasts at Trunks. Mouth set into a snarl, 17 roared as he attacked.

Trunks had seemingly not moved from his position in the sky. The energy balls hit him fully and smoke accumulated from 17's assault. Once 17 was sure he finished the pest he let up on his assault and waited for the inevitable revelation of Trunk's destruction.

"Really? That's the best you got? After so many years of making me suffer, I'm disappointed," Trunks said from above the android.

"How?" 17 breathed, shocked to the core.

"Oh well. I gave you a chance, now it's my turn," and with that he disappeared again.

17 didn't see the punch that caused him to fly into the air, he did see Trunks below him, looking up with contempt.

Trunks raised a hand and pointed a finger at 17. "One finger," he said, "I'm going to give you the best insult to end your life."

18 had moved for her brother, but Trunks was faster, swiftly changing into an Ascended Saiyan, he made quick work of 17 with a strong ki blast.

"Aaaaahhh!" Was the agonizing cries of 17 as he was destroyed.

"17!" 18 screamed in shock and sorrow. Never in a lifetime would she ever have thought Trunks, of all people, was capable of destroying any one of them, but the facts were evident. 17 was gone - just like that - all because of a monkey.

Trunks' golden hair relaxed and changed into the familiar lavender. He breathed in a sigh and then focused his penetrating gaze on the last nuisance. He un-sheathed his sword. "I'm starting to get hungry, so can we get this over with now?"

18 stared in horror at the man in front of her. He could kill her; he could actually kill her, that revelation alone bought something that she had never felt in years, fear.

Trunks started advancing on the android, expression grim and determined. 18 could do nothing but take involuntary steps backwards while he continued to gain on her.

"All the lives you've taken; my master; my father; my family. At long last, they will be avenged."

18's mind had been overworking itself, processing different means of escape, all with horrible outcomes. He was faster than her, she had bared witness to the demonstration of his speed. He was stronger than her too. She didn't know what to do, her situation had not allowed her the time to grieve over the loss of her brother, at the moment her survival meant everything.

"Wait!" She blurted out with her hands in front of her.

Trunks briefly paused, assessing the android with a curious gaze. She was going to die anyway, making her beg for it would be all the more sweeter.

"I saw you go blonde, that's how you were able to kill 17," the more she talked, the more it made sense to her, "You're nothing without that power. Right now, all you're trying to do is scare me. I'm not playing around anymore."

Trunks laughed, loud guffaws that echoed around the vicinity. He paused in his laughter and snickered at the android's denial, "My god, in all my years I never expected this. An android with fear? I've seen everything!"

18 glared with unbridled hatred, "Bastard!" She charged with reckless abandon, choosing to lose herself in anger instead of fear.

Trunks lifted his blade into the air and brought it down, intending on cutting the android in half, but 18 narrowly dodged the attack and delivered a hard kick to Trunks' head, sending him reeling for a few feet. She gracefully landed on her feet and smirked, "I knew it."

Trunks shifted his neck, silently testing for any pain. When it was made obvious that there was none, he looked at his opponent with a grin, "That tickled."

18's eyes widened. "Impossible, you shouldn't have a head on your shoulders!"

"Hahahaha! This is really sad. The great and fearful android 18," he made a show of acting like a terrified victim, "Please don't hurt me! I'm so scared!"

"Ahhhh!" 18 roared as she gathered a gargantuan ball of ki in both hands and fired it, with all her might, to her enemy.

Now, Trunks knew he was stronger than her, but even so, that particular attack would damage him, possibly leaving him handicapped against 18 - he was not taking any chances. He transformed into an Ascended Saiyan and sheathed his sword. He put one hand infront of him and stopped the attack. With little effort, he threw the big ball into the air and watched it disappear into the sky.

18's fears had returned to the forefront of her consciousness. He was blonde again, she really wanted to run.

"I've wasted too much time already. It's over 18." Trunk raced and kneed the girl in the gut.

18 doubled over in pain, only to be met with a hard kick to the face, sending her crashing into several buildings. Before she could get her bearings, she felt searing heat on her abdomen and realized, to her dismay, it was a ki blast. More blasts followed, knocking the wind out of her. The pain was mind numbing. She knew he was holding back, waiting for the right time to finish her, when she was at her lowest. He was hell bent on making her suffer till the end.

"I wish I didn't kill your brother too early. I would have loved to give him the same...courtesy I'm giving you," she heard him say. He sounded like he was proud of himself, that smug bastard.

Trunks stopped his attack and looked down at the battered and bruised android. He really did a number on her. Vegeta would be proud.

"Now, to finish you off once and for all," Trunks said, making hand movements - creating his 'Burning Attack' finisher. Once the ki was gathered he descended to the ground so as to have a point-blank range to finish off his opponent.

"Say your prayers android, or wait, I bet you don't even know how to," Trunks said, then briefly noticed the lack of response, not even a cough? He looked at 18 and realized she had lost consciousness. What a waste of quirky remarks.

"Oh well," Trunks shrugged, then focused on releasing his finisher. Finally, justice...

But the more he looked at it, the more he realized that this was not what 18 deserved, no, she deserved far worse than a quick finish. She had spent her entire life instilling fear before taking her target's lives, this felt more like a hollow victory each second.

"No, I need to finish her now," Trunks said, but he continued to hold his attack. After sometime he stopped his attack altogether and threw his hands up in frustration.

"This is too easy!" It wasn't Saiyan pride that was speaking, but a tormented boy who felt like this would never justify the sins that the androids had caused.

"You need to suffer more!" He snarled at the unconscious girl. He noted something on her face, looking akin to tear stains.

"Pfft! Yeah right, androids don't cry!" It had to be the glare of the sun, it just had to be.

Trunks looked at his watch. He needed to go see his mother, that and then deal with the Cell of now, but so far he was undecided on how to handle the piece of junk laying next to him...

Then an idea struck.

"Piece of junk!" He exclaimed happily. His mother was thorough with technology, perhaps she would know what to do. Oh yes, he knew she would be furious that he didn't destroy 18, but she would understand once he explained himself, right?

He looked scornfully at 18, "I hope you're ready for hell cause I'm sure gonna take you there," Trunks said as he picked up the battered girl and shot into the sky, pacing to Capsule Corp.


	2. A mother's intuition

**Hello everyone! Okay, to start off thanks to those of you who read all my stories and thank you for the messages. I was going through a bit of a crisis(can't tell you what it was, but it involves my family) and I honestly thought I was going to sink into depression, but things a slowly starting to look up, they're not great but I could be worse. Okay, so I'm not really back yet from my hiatus, but I had a little time to waste and I was surprised when I came to the site and saw that the Android 18 and Trunks fic got 10 reviews! Ten reviews, I wasn't even expecting more than three! Thanks guys, I'm happy! Oh if you still reading my other stories then they're still on Hiatus, sorry but I'll only update them when I'm sure the time is right, and my writer's block is off - hope you don't hold that against me. As for this particular fic, I never read the Manga in my entire life nor am I knowleadgable in what really happened when Trunks came back from the future. People seem to be pointing out different level's of Trunk's power, or more specifically, the level in which Trunks was most able to battle Android 18. Thanks for the info, but is what I did really wrong? I mean yeah, he is no match for the androids at his base form, so that's why a changed it a bit, even adding ascended super saiyan(because I was a little wary with using his original super sayian mode). I'm perfectly aware that Android 18 is a cyborg, if not then how could she get pregnant? Anywho, I'm glad that you guys actually provided so much information, it means my readers are interested! Here's a chapter for yall, hope you like it.**

Bulma Briefs was in her underground office, furiously typing on a computer situated on her work-desk. The place had been a necessary addition to her household ever since the android dilemma started. The androids did attack Capital City a few times on their rampage, and most of the inhabitants suffered greatly, but the ones who did survive relied heavily on Bulma's intellect and skill to keep them alive. It was a trying responsibility for the mother, but she wasn't known for operating one of the biggest capsule companies in the world for nothing. With her help, the remaining occupants of Capital City were able to gather vital recourses to assist in their survival. They created hideouts to use whenever reports informed of the androids habitual arrival. Overtime Bulma had placed herself as rightful candidate to be their leader, but she only chalked off their praise to doing the right thing.

She looked at her computer to make sure she had every piece of information. It was hard for everyone on Earth, living in a world where you could die any day was a haunting prospect, something Bulma was well versed in. She had lost so much, Vegeta was the prominent thought. That man was stubborn to the end, but she would give anything to see him again. Alas, nothing could be done about it, she couldn't bring him back, there were no dragon balls to use for aid. None of the Z fighters where alive to tell the tale, something she was bitterly reminded of everyday. She could at least smile to the fact that Chi Chi was somehow able to live through this ordeal, God knows they needed each other for comfort.

Then there was Trunks, the light in her darkness, the pillar of her hopes and dreams, her beautiful son. He had been born in an unfair time period, she only wished it was years before when she had him, before the whole android mess started, but wishful thinking could only get someone so far in terms of imagination. A twinge of guilt emitted from her heart, she placed so much responsibility on him - at such a young age - and no mother should ever feel satisfied with putting their child in harms way, no matter what the circumstances were. She knew he was the only person capable of using the time capsule to relay the message to the past Z fighters, she had to stay and salvage anything from the catastrophe the androids and intentionally forged.

She worried about him every day, often wondering if he was safe; if he'd finally met his father; if he had saved Goku's life. It was not healthy for a mother to worry, Trunks had told her once, but maternal instincts overruled everything else. There were moments were she would have nightmares of losing Trunks, her last family, to the androids, which would send her into fits of uncontrollable sobbing, but not today.

This day felt different. She felt... at peace for some reason, with reports of the lack of android activity, she had allowed herself time to entertain a false sense of security, it would only be for a moment, she convinced herself. She would wait for Trunks' return. She understood her lack of knowledge of time travel, so she accepted the fact that she might have to wait years to see her son again.

"I certainly hope not," She whispered forlornly as she kept typing.

That's when she heard something.

It was a thump at first, indicating someone was upstairs, on the ground floor, but who? It couldn't be Chi Chi, she was very strict on keeping tabs incase an android crisis arised once again.

Three more thumps followed in sequence.

Bulma was starting to sweat. Something didn't feel right. If the androids had invaded her home...

"Mom, You home?!" A voice called, a bit deeper than Bulma remembered, but it was a voice she was familiar with. Which meant one thing.

Trunks was home.

Bulma raced, quickly unlocking the hatch to her underground office - running up the stairs to the ground floor as if her life depended on it.

"Trunks?!" Bulma called, desperately trying to pinpoint her son's location.

"I'm by the front door! You locked it again!"

Bulma resisted the urge to roll her eyes. He could easily break it and come inside, but for some reason he chose to show restraint. She didn't really care however as she happily strutted to the front door and opened it. What she saw made her eyes bulge.

It was her son alright, a lot bigger than the child she remembered a few weeks ago. Tears gathered in Bulma's eyes as her wished was granted. Trunks was finally home, he made it.

"You're... bigger," she whispered in awe, fighting down the urge to just glomp him where he stood. He seemed to be carrying someone on his shoulders. Bulma couldn't accurately see who the person was, but she guessed another victim of those destructive androids.

She was thoroughly surprised however, when her son unceremoniously dropped the poor girl to the ground and opened his arms.

Trunks expected a lot of things, for his mother to glomp him and shower him with affection, to hear how much his mother loved and miss him... What he didn't expect was the hard fist that bonked his head.

"Ow!" Trunks whined as he cradled his sore sculb. He peeked to view an irate mother.

"Trunks Briefs! How dare you treat a woman like that!" Bulma berated.

"...Wha...?" Trunks was confused with his mother's anger, subsequently making the situation worse.

A tick mark formed on Bulma's head. She pointed a finger at the prone blonde on the ground and then directed her withering gaze to her child. Trunks could do nothing but cower in fear.

"No, mom, you got it all wrong!" Trunks hastily explain, "She isn't a girl."

Did going to the past somehow corrupt his mind? Bulma briefly wondered if her son had lost his sanity.

Upon seeing his mother's disbelieving look, he decided to clarify further, "It's Android 18."

At first he was met with an incredulous stare, but once his mother had a good look at the limp figure on the ground, the colour quickly drained from her face. There was a brief pause...

Then Bulma screamed.

She scrambled away from the android and hid behind a corner. For a brief moment nothing happened, and then Bulma hesitantly peeked from her position.

"Is she dead?" Bulma asked in fear and confusion. The fact that 18 looked worse for wear was surprising in itself, but she could never be sure.

"Well..." Trunks frowned, unsure of how his mother would take the news, "No."

Something didn't make sense to Bulma, "How did she get like that?"

Trunks shrugged, "Kicked her but as soon as I killed her brother."

"Wait, you what?!" Bulma asked, shocked to actually hear that from her son's mouth.

"That's right. I beat the androids. I went to the past and got training. I'm way stronger than them now. Hell, I can kill her now if I wanted to."

"Then why don't you!" Bulma said irritably.

"Uhh... Well, I thought about it and an idea came to mind."

"Trunks, that thing is responsible for so much death. What the hell are you thinking, boy?! Kill her, now!" Bulma commanded heatedly.

Trunks put his hands up in surrender," Wait, I know I should kill her but then I thought, maybe she would be more useful to you."

"What do you mean by that?" Bulma asked, bewildered.

"She's an android, right, one of Dr Gero's greatest creations? She may have something that you can use. She has so much technology within her, stuff we don't know about. Maybe that could help you out, you know, give you new understanding in technology and how to do certain things? Afterwards, then I'll kill her."

Bulma was not entertaining such thoughts however, "I don't want that monster anywhere near my house!"

"Believe me, mom, I feel the same way, but you can use her to our advantage. I can take her down piece by piece to aid you in your research if I have to. If at anytime it seems too much, I'll blow her apart." Trunks said with conviction.

Bulma knew that this wasn't the android that killed her husband, but that didn't mean 18 was a saint either, she was equally involved in destruction, just like her brother. She was a nightmare that needed to be destroyed permanently... but she guessed Trunks had a point in his suggestion. Bulma had recently started researching on alternative means of resurrection, without the use of the dragon balls, and all endeavors had come up short. Understanding Dr Gero's technology had never been a part of the plan, but maybe...

"I... I don't know about this, Trunks." Bulma said, unsure of the surprising situation she found herself in.

"Hey, don't you worry. If it seems dangerous then I'll just kill her, simple as that," Trunks said with a grin.

"... What if she wakes up?" Bulma asked in trepidation.

"Then I'll force her to co-operate. I'm faster than her, she would be dead before she even moved," Trunks said with conviction.

"..."

"Mom, it's okay, it was just a suggestion I wanted to run by you first before I did anything. I'll take her to a safe area and finish her off," Trunks said as her grabbed 18 and hoisted her over his shoulder.

"... Wait, Trunks," Bulma said, looking more torn by the second. It was a huge opportunity, not only would understanding Dr Gero's twisted genius help them develop, but it could also aid them in creating a stronger, lasting future. This was something that seemed like once in a lifetime, and Bulma was slowly starting to follow her gut instinct instead of her head.

Trunks hummed in question, patiently waiting for his mother to continue.

Bulma nibbled on her lip and then exhaled, "You're right, this could be just what we needed."

Trunks raised an eyebrow, "Really?" he asked, surprised.

"Yes," Bulma cupped her chin in thought, "but I don't know how to really analyze her specifically without some sort of blueprint. Who knows, she might have a bomb in her."

A light bulb sparked in Trunks's head, "I know where to get them, I think."

"You think?" Bulma asked in confusion.

"Yeah, Dr Gero's lab," Trunks said.

"And you know where that is?" Bulma asked curiously.

"Yep, going to the past can do that to you. I'll be back in a bit." Trunks prepared to take off, but he was stopped by his mother.

"The place is most likely devastated," Bulma surmised.

"Yeah, but if it could help us then we should take anything we can get," Trunks said.

"Fine, are you going to leave her here?" Bulma asked, fearful of the prospect.

"Hell no, she could wake up at any time," Trunks said with a frown, blasting into the air and heading straight for his intended destination.

Bulma sighed in relief, at the very least she would be safe - if only for the moment.

Trunks knew exactly where he was headed. Since his power increased dramatically, it would not be long before he found the secret location of Gero's lab. He made sure to look around when he could, searching for any signs of Cell. He knew all too well that it wouldn't be too long before the monster made himself known, too bad for him, he could never be perfect since 17 was swiftly demised.

"Not like he's gonna get 18 either, but I wouldn't mind the challenge," mainly because he knew that victory would be his.

He found Gero's lab in no time. Easily manoeuvring around the debris, he looked on at a few empty tubes. He found the one that would have held Android 16.

It was empty as well.

"Hmm," Trunks hummed disapprovingly, "so those monsters killed you off, huh?"

No matter.

He looked around the destroyed lab, he was quite certain that Dr Gero would have never made his blueprints of the androids easily discoverable, so he searched every inch of the place, careful to keep an eye on his blonde enemy. After sometime things seemed fruitless. He had half a mind to just blow the place to pieces, but patients was key in this case. He suddenly noticed a chain in between two rooms. He raised a curious eyebrow.

He walked up to the chain and briefly studied its features, it seemed more than meets the eye. He experimentally pulled, more to test a theory than anything else, and was surprised when a pathway appeared underneath him. It seemed strange that he had never noticed this in the past, but with the hectic ordeal of the androids and Cell, there was never time to consider this place adventurous.

He walked down the pathway and found himself in an area that held so many different terminals, old and offline. He carefully looked around. He groaned in annoyance when he felt 18 subconsciously move on his shoulder, he could tell that she was still asleep because of her breathing, even if she wasn't, it wouldn't change a thing. He looked around the cramped area and finally saw what he might need.

He approached a cabinet and opened it, proceeding to take out its contents. There were large stacks of paper, some with glimpses of bodies, most likely the android anatomy. Well, Trunks mused, at least it was something.

He arrived back home in record time. Bulma wasted no time and started to work. They placed 18 on a metal table, strapping her down - as redundant as that was - right inside Bulma's underground sanctuary. Trunks had never taken his eyes off of the android. Trusting his mother to do whatever she needed, Trunks stood at a corner, and watched on in silence.

Bulma had attached special wires to the android, which would provide accurate reading on 18's metallic structure, like and X-ray of sorts. The reading would be given in a few minutes, giving her time to focus on other matters. She looked at the pages of paper Trunks had found. It seemed that 17 and 18 were not the only Androids Dr Gero had in mind, luckily, Trunks had confirmed that there was nothing else in Gero's lab. Bulma payed mild attention to the designs of the unkown androids, more focused on finding a specific one, her eyes widened when she finally found what she was looking for.

"... Got it," she whispered more to herself than her battle-hardened son. She looked at the paper critically. The body seemed simple enough of 18, but the codes of information where truly confusion. Dr Gero was twisted, but his intelligence was of the highest caliber. It would take some time to decipher what had been written about 18.

The computer signalled the completion of the analysis. Bulma clicked a button and results appeared on the computer's screen. Her eyes immediately widened.

"... It can't be," she whispered in something akin to fascination and horror.

"What is it?" Trunks asked, curious as to what sparked such a reaction from his mother.

"Well, I'm not sure myself," Bulma said, mouth forming a thin line. "My guess is that we were mislead."

"What do you mean?" Trunks asked.

Bulma looked from the screen and stared at her son, her face troubled, "She has the bone structure of a normal woman." Bulma briefly clicked a button, as if to confirm something, and her expression immediately turned grim, " she's not an android, well, not to the degree that we believed."

"Come on, mom, you can't be serious, she's just a robot!" Trunks said firmly.

"Yes and no," Bulma said, " she has robotic parts in her system, but the rest are organic."

"Organic? You mean Dr Gero actually experimented like that, using living parts for his sick pleasure - what a disgusting freak." Trunks said, potent venom lacing his words.

Bulma frowned at her son's hypothesis, "That's not exactly what I mean, her organic features seem to be hers alone. I don't think Dr Gero is smart enough to create what I'm looking at."

"Maybe they're just for show," Trunks suggested.

"She can have children, Trunks. She has a reproductive system; a functioning reproductive system if the readings are correct." Bulma looked at the screen again and gaped. "She has a bomb too."

"A bomb?" Trunks said in surprise.

"Yeah, right next to her heart... I can't believe that I was right about that, so in a way it was a good idea in not killing her. Who knows how powerful that thing is?"

"Pshht, I bet if she was put in the right area then it wouldn't matter if she had a bomb in her," Trunks dismissed.

"I'm serious!" Bulma retorted, "This could really kill us in the long run."

"Well, I doubt it," Trunks muttered.

"This changes so many things. 18 is a cyborg. You have to admit, Dr Gero is clever if he could create such power for a normal human."

"His sick, that's what he is," Trunks replied sharply.

"Yeah, yeah," Bulma waved off, "It will take me a while to understand all this gibberish," she said, gesturing to the paper she was holding.

"And?" Trunks asked.

"Will you be willing to wait in that corner for hours?" Bulma questioned.

"Whatever it takes," Trunks answered swiftly.

"... Well, okay, if you can stand there then that's fine," Bulma said and then got back to work.

It took more than a few hours - 8 to be exact, where Trunks had to force his mother to take breaks and eat - but Bulma had finally figured out the puzzle.

"Okay," Bulma started while staring at the blueprints, "it says that she is a cyborg. She has a powerful engine core situated just bellow her heart - power limitless-"

"What?! That thing gives her unlimited power?" Trunks queried in disbelief, if that was indeed the case then he would need to kill 18 immediately, no use in having her live and possibly surpassing him in strength. He would not stand for that at all.

"Well, not exactly, it's more on the lines that it has the ability to give her unlimited power, it doesn't necessarily mean that she does have it. She has the potential, yes, but nothing more."

Trunks sighed in relief, that was close, at least he still had plenty of time to destroy 18 later.

Bulma fixed her gaze back on the blueprints. "We already know that she has reproductive organs, most of her torso is organic, a minuscule amount of organic muscle tissue is part of her limbs - well that explains the bleeding - the inside of her head is encased with a metal shell, protecting the organic brain from har... what's this?" Bulma scowled.

"What now?" Trunks asked.

"These codes, they aren't sole indications to the body structure, but programs too. I've seen these types of coding before," No wonder half of the information didn't make any sense, it was machine language, the use of brinary characters that only a computer could process.

"Okay," Trunks drawled, "what does that mean?"

"This could be the key to understanding how 18 functions. Just like any machine, codes need to be admitted in order for the machine to work, specific instruction that allows a mechanism to seemingly act on it's own accord."

"... You lost me already."

"Oh hush, you," Bulma dismissed, "let me get back to work." This time, she knew exactly what she was looking for as she started typing on her keyboard.

An hour later and Bulma was glaring at the screen as if it called her old.

"... It's impossible," Bulma gritted out, "Dr Gero's programming doesn't follow normal class sequences, it's jumbled up and all over the place."

"So... Nothing?" Trunks realized.

"It's too complex, it could take years to understand..."

Trunks nodded, accepting the situation for what it was, "Time to kill her."

Bulma seemed to go rigid at the statement. 18 was, in all science terms, a masterpiece, the very definition of technology at its finest. The girl deserved to die, sure, but Bulma saw a much better use.

"Not yet," Bulma stopped her son in stride, "I'm far from finished with her."

"You said it yourself, it could take years to understand what we got in front of us, by that time people would have died for nothing. Sorry mom, but this is for the best."

"I know that," Bulma conceded, "but maybe... she may still be of use to us."

"How?!" Trunks quarelled.

"Watch your tone, young man!" Bulma scolded, "Perhaps there's a way we could use her to fight for us-"

"No way, that's enough. You tried mom, you really did, but we came up short, I'm not gonna let you waste your time on her anymore."

"Listen to me!" Bulma commanded, "This could be what we need. If I can find a way to change her initial programming, she could be very useful in protecting Earth."

"I'm here; I'm stronger than her," Trunks said, resolute.

"But she lives longer," Bulma countered.

Oh, what have I done, Trunks thought in dismay. This never should have escalated as far as it has. Now his mother was attached to the damn thing.

"Did you forget what she is?" Trunks asked.

Bulma fixed her son with a glare, effectively shutting up his tirade.

"Okay, okay," Trunks said in surrender, "but I still don't like this."

"Does it matter if it will benefit Earth?"

"... I should have killed you earlier." Trunks said, sending a hated glare to his unconscious enemy.

Her head was throbbing. All she could feel was pain. Her entire body felt like it had been torn to shreds and repeatedly beat on, it even hurt to breath. She slowly opened her eyes, vision blurry.

"Mom, get away from her!" was what she heard, followed by a scream and shuffling. She groaned in pain, her body felt terrible.

"Well, well, well, I was wondering when you're gonna wake up. You've been asleep for weeks," she looked painfully to the voice. When her vision cleared she immediately noticed the Demi-Sayian.

"Welcome back, 18," Trunks said in mock happiness.

18 groaned again. No, not him, of all the people to be stuck with, it had to be him. She didn't even care to notice the woman using Trunks as a shield, she didn't care about anything. She had lost her reason to live anyway, 17 was dead. All she felt at the moment was hollow.

"What, no hello? I'm hurt," Trunks continued, "You have no idea how happy I am to see you like that."

18 sent him weak glare, too tired to retort.

"Well, whatever. Hey mom, why don't you take over," the way Trunks talked, so smug, so... elated, made 18 nervous and wary. She then noticed a woman come from behind Trunks, looking nervous and ready to bolt at any time.

"Uhhhm..." Bulma gulped nervously and stealed herself, "Y-You've caused so much death, Android 18. So many people had to suffer because of you and your brother."

18 lazily rolled her eyes. What else was new?

"So, when my son brought you here, I really wanted you dead more than anything else, but your technology far exceeds human progression, so I decided to see what makes you tick," Bulma continued, more confident of herself.

18 shivered, feeling disgusted at being subjected to violation, and by an old woman no less.

"I realized I couldn't figure out Dr Gero's design, but I did find one thing useful, " She took out a small device and held it in one hand, "I made it myself."

It took only seconds for 18's eyes to widen in horror at looking at the familiar remote.

"I followed Dr Gero's instructions to the letter and made this. That's right, it can effectively shut you down. I'm sure, I tested it already," Bulma said boldly.

18 could not take her eyes off of the device, that horrible thing, forcing her into a painful slumber every time - she could not take that again.

"It's for leverage, I guess," Bulma said slowly, rubbing the remote tentatively around her fingers, "Until we figure out how you work of course. I need to conduct a few more studies."

"Then I'll kill you." Trunks finished, finality prominent..

Bulma fixed her son with a stern look and focused her gaze back on the girl. "Well, it really depends how fast you die, but for now we need you alive. Oh and don't worry about that little bomb in your chest either. I took care of it."

This just kept getting better, 18 mentally spat. Not only was she near her enemy, without any means to defend herself, but it seemed she was cornered with no choice other than being a lab rat, just great.

"Just co-operate and things will go smoothly," Bulma said seriously.

"What... do you want with me?" 18 rasped, demanding with difficulty.

"To see if its possible to use your power for the good of Earth," Bulma clarified bluntly.

18 did not know whether to laugh or curse the woman. Help Earth? The place that she had repeatedly layed waste to? This woman was definitely high.

"I'm serious, if I find that we don't have a use for you anymore, then my son will deal with you," Bulma said as she left the office.

Trunks fixed his gaze on 18, "One mistake, android, just one glitch and I'll blow you to pieces. After my mom's finished with you, I'll still blow you to pieces, it's a win-win situation, wouldn't you agree?"

18 could do nothing but glare.

Bulma came back and called to her son. She looked back at 18 and pointed the remote, clicking it without hesitation.

18's eyes bugged and her mouth opened in a silent scream, pain like no other surging through her body, then her body lay limb, eyes closed to the world. Before darkness claimed her she heard Trunks' haunting words, "Welcome to hell."

Bulma's brows furrowed. 18's reaction was strange. Did the remote... hurt her? It wasn't supposed to - the design of the thing only indicated induced slumber, no amount of pain should be present.

"Come, time for bed," Bulma said as she climbed the stairs, deep in thought.

Trunks' gaze lingered on 18 a while longer, and then he followed his mother. Oh, he was going to enjoy his time here after all.

Thinks had gotten a lot more interesting.

18 was having a nightmare. She had been watching her brother killed repeatedly in front of her, what made it worse was the scene looking more horrific as it played out.

"Die, android!" Trunks bellowed as he blew 17 to pieces.

"18, you bitch! You just stood there while I died!" 17 screamed as he was incenerated.

"No, 17!"

18 just sobbed at the image; the constant reminder that 17 was gone and never coming back.

"Now, for you, 18," Trunks said viciously as he approached 18.

18 tried to run but she could never hope to beat Trunks' speed.

He kneed her in the gut and then send flying through buildings.

18 landed harshly on the ground, Trunks was on her in no time.

"Hmm... You certainly do have a nice body," Trunks leered, greatly surprising and horrifying 18.

"Maybe when I'm done having a little fun then I'll kill you... What the hell, I'll just knock you out now then play with your body a bit. I'm a growing man after all.

"No!" 18 screamed when Trunks fired a ki blast.

18 jerked as she woke up. Her breathing was haggard, the nightmare still fresh in her consciousness, burning like smoldering fire, refusing to leave. Her blurry mind finally came to the conclusion that she was awake. She looked to her side and saw a shocked Bulma staring at her, so that's how she was able to wake up. She looked away from the mother, finally noticing that tears where streaming down her face.

Bulma had seen it but tried to deny it. The thrashing; the discomfort; the screams; all significant proof of a nightmare. She never thought androids could experience such a thing, but it had been confirmed when she forcibly woke the girl... That's when she noticed something else.

"Look at me," Bulma commanded softly.

18 didn't move.

"Look. At. Me." Bulma punctuated fiercely.

No response.

The anger that radiated in Bulma's eyes was palpable.

"Look at me now!" Bulma screamed, furious.

This time 18 did look at her, her usual piercing blue eyes were dull and glazed, her face was a mess of tear stains, and that contributed to increase Bulma's anger. The cyborg was actually crying, although it was very shocking to see, it still wasn't a welcoming prospect, it would further prove the 18 was more human than machine, something which Bulma refused to believe.

"You think you have the right to cry, after everything you've done?!" Bulma spat.

18 just stared at the woman emotionlessly.

"Answer me, you bitch!" Bulma screamed, pointing the remote at 18 again.

"Go ahead, do it," 18 said softly.

Bulma's stance wavered at the defeated tone.

"I've got no reason to live anymore. My life is meaningless."

"How dare you?" Bulma gritted out, "You don't get to decide whether you live or die anymore!"

"And you do?" 18 countered, "What, you think you some kind of god now? Are you the one to deem someone worthy or useless if you see it fit?"

"You should be asking yourself that, you monster!" Bulma shouted in fury, "You have killed millions of people, all becuase you felt you could! You don't deserve to be worthy of anything!"

"Then kill me!" 18 shouted, annoyance finally dawning her features, "You'd be doing the world a favour, right?"

Tears gathered in Bulma's eyes as she remembered those she lost because of this girl in front of her. She hated her so much, if it wasn't for her and her brother then Vegeta...

18 stood up on wobbly legs and glared at the woman in front of her. She stretched her arms at either side of her, opening up completely.

"My brother was killed! Don't you get it!? I don't care anymore, do whatever you want with me! I don't care!" 18 tried to choke back a sob, but it was too late.

Bulma's eyes widened at hearing the broken sobs emitted from the girl's mouth. This seemed so wrong, 18 had been an android before the discovery of her true nature, she was not supposed to have any feelings, but looking at the broken girl in front of her, Bulma couldn't help but feel some sort of pity. If the information she got was correct, then 18 was fully human at a time, Bulma could only venture as to what Dr Gero put 18 and her brother through.

She guessed she could call herself a hypocrite. Vegeta had destroyed planets, killed billions of people and he still ended up being her husband - after sometime she forgot all his past crimes, because that's just what it was, the past - how typically hot-headed of her.

"What are you waiting for, an invitation?!" 18 shouted louder, her anger slowly starting to get the best of her.

Bulma looked on in continued deep thought. She needed to see this from a different perspective. Could 18 somehow be... redeemable, Vegeta was, and the man was known for being bad. The fact that 18 did in fact have appearant feelings only caused to confuse Bulma further.

What the hell are you thinking, she's a heartless monster, she mentally chided, but then the Saiyan prince found his way to the forefront of her consciousness once again.

18 had run out of patience and approached the distracted woman. She grabbed Bulma's hand - that held the remote - greatly surprising the woman, and pointed the weapon directly at her face. "Do it! Shut me down and kill me!"

Bulma was shocked with two things. Firstly, she had been too distracted to notice 18's approach, secondly, 18's touch wasn't hurting her at all, the girl was being surprisingly gentle, as if careful not to break her arm or too tired to actually administer harm - for some reason Bulma chose to entertained the former.

What happened was quick and instantaneous. 18 flew to the other side of the room and hit the wall harshly, causing cracks to form. She landed on the floor with a dull thud.

"Mom, I told you to wait for me before you activated her!" Trunks said firmly, then turned his glare to his most hated enemy. "And I told you, one mistake and you're history!"

Trunks quickly transformed into a Super Saiyan and started gathering ki in his hands.

18 lay huddled on the floor, her body too sore to move on her own. She whimpered and trembled as the pain became more pronounced. Closing her eyes, she waited for her imminent demise...

"Trunks... stop," Bulma said gently, touching her son's shoulder to convey her request.

"Stop?" Trunks asked, dumbstruck.

"Yes, stop, right now," Bulma said seriously.

Trunks dismissed his attack, completely confused with his mother's attitude.

Bulma exhaled and started approaching 18.

"Mom, wai-" he was stopped from speaking any further by a hand.

Bulma stopped just a few inches away from 18. She fell to her knees and lifted 18's arm - ignoring the girl's flinch - hoisting it on her shoulders and helping the girl to her feet.

18 could only look at the woman in shock as she was led to the bed.

Trunks watched the scene in rapt interesting, he could not believe what his mother was doing. Why was she helping that disgusting abomination?

Once 18 was on the bed, Bulma started, "Now you've experienced loss, just like every other living person on this Earth. I'll give you time to grieve over your brother," and with that the mother started to make her leave of the office, calling her son to follow.

"Aren't you going to shut her down?" Trunks sputtered, staring wide-eyed at his mother. Did he miss something?

Bulma briefly looked at the remote in her hand. Memories flashed of 18 troubled face when she first used the device on her.

"... I don't think I need to," Bulma softly stated, carefully putting the device in her pocket.

Before Trunks could retort he was stopped with a firm look.

"There will be no need for it and that's final," Bulma said, finality ending the dispute.

Trunks threw his hands up in frustration. What the hell did that android do to his mother?

Meanwhile, 18 continued to stare at the door where Bulma had left, her own confusion present. The mother's expression had changed, she didn't seem angry anymore, she seemed more understaning? Well, maybe that was a stretch but after everything that's been happening 18 couldn't pass anything up.

Why didn't she shut her down and kill her; wasn't that the reason Trunks became stronger; wasn't that what they had endeavored to accomplish? She didn't understand Trunks' mother... but for some reason she found herself greatful for the woman's effort and words, Trunks would have left her huddled on the corner, laughing at her pain, but his mother seemed... compassionate.

It was idiotic of the woman to show compassion to an enemy, but that's what happened, and 18 actually found herself, whether to her dismay or pleasure, touched at Bulma's behavior.

Not knowing if an opportunity like this would ever arrive again, 18 allowed herself to finally grieve over the loss of her brother.


	3. Trouble in paradise?

**... I was a little surprised when I checked my reviews and an apparent argument had been going on. Thanks for your reviews; it helped to increase reception; but to Guest and Alex, while your information is appreciated, could you please do a girl a favour and stop trying to best each other? Yes, I lack knowledge in the android saga of DBZ and mostly watched the anime. Yes, my knowledge is a bit hazy since I watched the show so long ago with my brothers. Although your insight is helpful, I've already decided that I'm not going to change anything. Please guys, I'm begging, don't argue; it makes this fic seem like a waste of my time. I can take flames(most of them are stupid anyway) but not this. Thank you and I hope the rest of my followers enjoy the latest update...**

"...How long are you going to be glaring at my back," 18 yawned passively.

"Until you spontaneously combust... As long as you breath, android, I'm gonna be watching you like the filth you are," Trunks hissed, narrowing his eyes as means to try and mentally blow 18's head off.

"I'd be careful if I were you," She goaded. "Your mom would be pretty upset if she found out that you gave into such desires."

Trunks' glare only turned feral at the intended baiting. "... Bitch."

They were walking through New Bay City - a place that was still in its instatement. Ever since 'proof' was revealed of the android's swift 'demise', Earth had started to resettle with what little it had left; more people soon came out of hiding to aid in the endeavour.

A contingent man with a camera had been around the area where Trunks had battled the androids. The man recorded what little he could, never missing the sight of Trunks obliterating 17 with as little toil as mysteriously turning his hair into a wild blonde tint. Ever since that moment, and Bulma's declaration that the androids would never hurt anyone again, Trunks Briefs became famous.

No one ever questioned whose side he was on; no one ever pried on his mysterious and fearful saiyan power. He defeated the androids; he was Bulma Brief's son - the woman that aided them excessively. Lastly, he was handsome and kind hearted to no fault. With that evident, they accepted Trunks in a heartbeat.

Trunks was in no means happy that his secret had been revealed to the world so carelessly, but he was surprised with the lack of contempt directed at him. These people, who coward under the android's power, accepted his? It was astonishing to the saiyan, and he reveled in their acceptance... That was until things took a sour turn.

He had become a celebraty, too much so, with legions of followers, and paparazzi trying on each turn to document every part of his life. Bulma didn't mind; in fact, Trunks was a little unnerved with how she seemed to brush off the spotlight so easily, leaving him to take the brunt of it.

And 18? Well that had been a panicking perplexity. No one was to know that one android was still alive or pandemonium would be the end result.

So Bulma proposed to disguise her, turning her hair from the platinum blonde she was notorious for to a sleak raven; her hair now fell completely with gravity, instead of the usual curl it would initially exude. Her eyes were fixed with green contacts, completely hiding the icy blue orifices that dominated many individual's nightmares. With the change of woredrobe and a slight tilt of behaviour, she seemed like any other beautiful woman, although Trunks was adament in keeping her ugly image firmly in his memory.

The most noticeable thing that Trunks did notice about 18 was her seemingly sudden submissiveness to Bulma. He had an inkling of when it started; he could never forget the time when his mother first reactivated 18 without his consent. He had been scared tremendously when he had heard 18 screaming, only to discover that she was holding his mother's hand. He acted out and would have destroyed her too, had it not been for Bulma's intervention.

Ever since that day; ever since that moment, something changed. Trunks knew it. The relationship between Bulma and 18 became something that bewildered and disgusted him. His mother was still firm with the android, with threats of deactivation if none complient ocassionally thrown around, but she was a lot more tolerable of 18's presents than she had ever been before. A few weeks later, she had 18 helping out with mediocre chores, allowing freedom from the underground bunker, like there was a sort of trust in the mother or something. Trunks had done a double take at the first occurrence, spitting his juice in surprise.

18 was still irritable, and she still grated his nerves to no end, but she had become a lot more willing to Bulma and her tests. Trunks had suspicion that the remote control didn't even play a role anymore.

After two months, Trunks had been tired, searching for supplies, that he immediately went to take a shower - which was situated upstairs. He didn't even bother knocking, since the particular shower was never used by his mother, only to be thrown off gaurd when he witnessed 18's naked body. The android held nothing back, screaming and calling him a pervert.

At first, Trunks had meekly apologised for his actions and hastly left the bathroom...

Only to realise that 18 was using his shower.

Oh how he raged, he had been close to opening the door and blasting the girl into space if it wasn't for Bulma, scolding him and telling him to be careful. That's when Trunks knew something had indeed happened between his mother and that...thing.

At first, he convinced himself that 18 somehow found the means to brainwash her, their casual conversations only solidified that belief. But as time went on, and it was obvious that no brainwashing was occuring, Trunks had been beside himself, seething to the reason his mother would betray him.

He had talked to her, and she had explained everything. That they had every right to kill 18 for all she did. Bulma also announced her undying hatred for 18's existence and how she wished the android never existed in the first place. This did nothing but confuse Trunks more.

He had asked as to why she was treating 18 like a normal person, and Bulma's answer had Trunks reeling. 18 reminded Bulma of Vegeta, and in turn, Bulma thought that she was redeemable.

Yeah, he had learned of his father's treacherious past, his unforgivable sins, but so what? That was another time, before Earth. Sure, the people who lost their loved ones could never forgive him, but he didn't destroy this world. So what reason did they have to hate him? 18, on the other hand, was the bane of existed, everyone had every reason to hate her and kill her. It was then he veritably understood hypocrisy in its true form.

Bulma had only shook her head, telling him that it was that kind of thinking that created never ending battles. She pointed out that if they had to run statistics, Vegeta was far worse than 18, destroying entire worlds while 18 only occupied Earth. The conversation drew to a close with Bulma pleading with him to at least tolerate 18's presence until the research was done, to which he confirmed his cooperation on the grounds that he would kill 18 once everything was denouemented. He took his mother's silence as approval and left without another word.

So with a little insight to the android and his mother's relationship with her, Trunks wondered why Bulma was continuing to run tests. She told him it was a means to discover technology that could help her in finding alternative ways to the dragonballs, and use the knowledge to help the world get back on its feet. It was a noble cause, so Trunks questioned no further.

Throughout the entire process, 18 had done nothing wrong. She hadn't even attempted to escape Capsule Corp; Trunks' constant ogle had nothing to do with her decisions.

Now, here he was, walking just behind 18, who seemed to be enjoying the rarity of freedom she had - looking around the city buildings in mild curiousity. Trunks scoffed; he just wished she could make one mistake so he could kill her already.

"Something wrong?" 18 asked over her shoulder. "You sounded like you were being strangled."

"None of your business," Trunks gritted out with a glare.

18 just shrugged. "Whatever." And with that, they continued on their way. 18 had been wearing new clothes she had recieved from Bulma. It consisted of a black long sleeved blouse, dark blue jeans, brown boots, and sliver bracelets to complete the alluring set. She looked amazingly enticing to anyone who saw her; her hair, eyes and slender body greatly increasing her overall sex appeal. If only they knew she was nothing more than a killer.

"Do you still have the list?" 18 asked after some time of awkward silence.

"Of course!" Trunks retorted, taking out a paper from his pocket rather forcefully.

"Jeez. You need to relax; I'm not gonna start killing people again," 18 huffed.

"Because if you do-"

"You'll kill me, I get it. Jeez, at least your mom trusts me, even if it is just a little."

Trunks scowled at her and then looked at the paper in his hands. It was a list of parts they needed to get for Bulma's experiments. Since other nations were still rebuilding themselves, the Bay region was the only place to obtain their specific requirements.

"Oh my god! It's Trunks!"

18 couldn't resist the urge to roll her eyes. Here we go again.

Trunks was swiftly bombarded by fans, and as the kind man that he was, he caved in and blushed at everyones praise.

These were the moments 18 hated. Because it wouldn't be long before...

"Wow. They just wouldn't leave me alone," Trunks muttered in awe. He had told everyone that he was very busy and didn't need to be disturbed. They soon understood and continued with their earlier commitments, not before asking that he stayed a while to indulge in their customs. Well, they were at least out of his hair for now.

"... H-Hi."

Except for one.

Trunks looked around and spotted a cute blonde with beautiful onyx eyes, wearing a blue dress that accentuated her curves. She was very pretty, and Trunks smiled warmly at her.

"Yes, how may I help you?" Trunks asked.

18 feigned gagging. The whole thing was ridiculously stupid. As soon as they arrived anywhere populated, hordes of girls would approach him with the obvious intent of being something more than just a passing stranger, this place was no different. Stupid fan girls, 18 mentally hissed.

"I-I," the girl stuttered with a blush, but quickly composed herself and looked at the man assertively. "Thank you for everything you've done for us."

"Think nothing of it," Trunks waved off, "I was just doing my job."

What made the whole thing bounteously worse, 18 continued her mental tirade, was that Trunks was a naïve idiot; he didn't know how to handle a girl who was crushing on him - sometimes he didn't even know they had crushes - resulting in frequent awkward moments and drama that 18 was getting fed up with.

"My name is Karla," the girl said softly.

"Oh, I'm Trunks."

18 wished she had something to bang her head repeatedly against. She already knows who you are, you freaking moron.

"It's nice to meet you, Trunks," Karla smiled prettily, happy with her chances increasing. "May I ask why you've come to this little old place?"

"Actually," Trunks said slowly, "We're looking for specific parts."

"We?" was the immediate question.

18 sighed. Well, time to save the fool.

"Hi," 18 said as she walked up to the pair. Masking her intial hostility, she continued, "He was actually refering to me. We came together."

Karla looked at her suspiciously. 18 was used to the signs of love struck fan girls. She figured out that Karla was acting more on jealousy than actual intrigue. "Oh, are you two...?"

The question was obvious to all.

"Oh, hell no!" Trunks screamed in disgust, before quickly gathering himself. His mother had told him not to draw too much attention to himself and 18. He begrudgingly conceded that 18 did not need any spotlight at the moment.

The girl winced at the shout and 18 delicately raised a condescending eyebrow. Subtle much?

Even if Karla did her best to hide her relief in discovering Trunk's lack of a girlfriend, 18 still saw it. The cyborg had to refrain herself before she actually dissuading Trunks' claim, only so as to see the pathetic blonde's smile vanish. Wait...did she just think that?

"Maybe I can help you guys out?" Karla offered, insistent in accompanying them. "I know some shops that might give you what you need."

"Thanks, but I think-"

"Thanks a lot! We'd love your help" Trunks interrupted gratefully. He was glad that the work load would at least be quicker to accomplish.

18 only glowered at him, which Trunks swiftly ignored. Was he actually going to fall for the same trick over and over again? Hadn't he figured it out by now? What. An. Idiot.

As they walked to the different shops, Karla coaxed conversations from the saiyan anytime she could, occasionally hinting that she wouldn't mind going out with him when Trunks told her that he had never had a girlfriend before. 18 could only scowl, struggling not to add a snarl with it, as she walked ahead of them. Let them have their stupid talk, at least she still knew the reason she came here. Get Bulma her stuff, then she could rest easy when they got home, or maybe help Bulma with cooking? She mentally shrugged. The mother would let her know.

That's when she felt something.

Her head whirled around and she stared wide-eyed into an alley. It wasn't ki energy at all; it was more instinctive, but she felt something was down there. Something very foreboding.

Trunks was too engrossed conversing with Karla that he nearly bumped into the cyborg. "What the hell? Warn me next time before you stop!"

18 ignored the spiteful lavender-haired boy and continued to stare in the darkness of the alley. She was not dreaming up this feeling, it was real.

"Hey...Jane," Trunks thought out of nowhere, not the best cover up alias, but they hadn't really come up with one for 18 yet, "what are you looking at?"

But 'Jane' only perdured in remaining still. After a pause, she commented, "There's something down there."

"What do you mean?" Karla asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I don't see anything," Trunks said suspiciously. What was 18 angle..?

"Ah!" All heads whipped at the scream that came from the alley. A man was running to them only to suddenly freeze, a look of agony on his face. No sooner did he drop to the ground, Trunks gasped.

On the man's back was a tail, a slimy looking green tail that had a needle like appendage by the head. There was no mistaking who that belonged to. Although the two girls could only stare in horror, Trunks knew exactly what they were dealing with.

"Cell," he growled.

Slitted red eyes regarded the trio with curiousity. "Huh... For a moment I thought I heard one of you say my name."

"What is that thing?!" Karla screamed hysterically. Trunks ignored her and focused on 18.

"Listen...Jane," he stressed, only to keep the guise accordingly firm, "Get everybody out of here! Don't come back when you do!"

Caught off gaurd, 'Jane' frowned in confusion. "Why?"

"Just do it!" Trunks bellowed, never taking his eyes off of the monster.

'Jane' had half a mind to rebuke his commands, but she noticed the urgency and fear in his posture. What the hell was going on?

"Do it now, Jane!" He was angry now, 'Jane' could tell, and that somehow snapped her out of her musings.

But...

Why should she do anything? She didn't owe this monkey a damn thing! Why should she follow ludicrous orders. No one ordered her around.

"No," she stated.

"No?!" Trunks demanded, swiftly in her face.

"I don't take orders from you." It kind of made her feel empowered; using his desperation to her advantage provided her with a thrill she hadn't felt in months. She didn't know what was going on with him, but right now, she could care less.

"Why you..."

Their argument was stopped by cackling in the distance.

"Oh, what a sight, a squabling couple," Cell said teasingly. "You, boy; you seem to know me."

Trunks cursed his luck. How could he have forgotten that he hadn't destroyed a being that could be as worse as the androids? How many people had already died because of his neglect? A few months worth, that's how many.

Shit! He cursed again when he realised the predicament. Cell was right in front of him, and 18 was right beside him.

"So tell me, boy, how do you know me, hmm?" Cell queried as he licked his lipless mouth. "Did you get information from survivors? I know I did leave plenty to strike fear. Or maybe there's something more to this?"

Trunks mentally counted down the time he would have originally met Cell had he not gone into the future; it would have been a month ago, meaning he only had a slight advantage. Things were unpredictable enough.

Cell's gaze focused on the raven-haired girl. He raised a feature that closely resembled an eyebrow, "With what you've seen, I'm surprised that neither of you are running for your lives."

Karla had already left to commit the request Trunks had originally bestowed on 'Jane', much to 18's confused delight. Now, there was nothing keeping them from holding back.

"I told you to leave!" Trunks admonished.

"And I told you I don't take orders from anyone!" 18 barked back.

"Why bother," Cell said off handedly, "we'll all become one soon enough."

Cell lunged for the pair, forcing Trunks to shove 18 away and deliver a quick punch in succesion. The green monster flew into a building explosively, giving Trunks enough time to forcefully haul 18 to his face.

"Listen, bitch," He snarled, "if you don't get out of here now, I will kill you!"

18 had taken enough of Trunks venom to know that something was wrong. He wasn't upset at her, no... He was worried about her.

"What's going on, Trunks?" 18 questioned, no visible hostility in her voice but worry instead. Trunks adamantly convinced himself that it was just a trick.

Before he could explain, he had to quickly dodge a ki blast that came out of nowhere. The momentum caused him to drop 18, dangerously close to a monster he never wanted her near.

"Oof!" 18 breathed as she landed harshly on the ground, only to feel something encircle around her neck and lift her clean off the ground. She tried punching the the offending object, only to realise she wasn't even denting it. She choked, horror stricken, as she thrashed for her life.

Cell casually walked with his tail firmly rapped around Jane's neck. He looked at the boy that was a few yards away from him. "Now I recognize your face. You look just like Vegeta."

Trunks stood and glared hatefully at Cell. He made sure not to stray his vision, less 18 be devoured in Cell's sick endeavour for perfection.

"And who is this?" Cell questioned, bringing Jane mere inches from his face. "Is she your lover?"

Trunks said nothing, choosing to remain focused on the beast in front of him.

"I'll take that hate-filled silence as a yes. Don't you worry, boy, she will be happy; in the end, you all will."

Okay, he hadn't figured out 18's identity yet, Trunks realised. So it should be much safer to play along than have him strike her.

"Let her go!" He heatedly commanded.

Cell clicked his tongue. The glint in his eye promising despair. "I can't do that. If only I had acquired my intended targets sooner, this would have never happened."

Bingo; Trunks decided to play his trump card.

"You mean 17 and 18?" Trunks questioned.

Cell eyes widened. It did not matter how this man figured out his meaning; all that mattered was getting his hands on his prizes. Squeezing harder on 18's neck to show how serious he was, he demanded, "So you know them! Where are they!? If you tell me, then I'll let your lover free!"

She's not my lover, Trunks wanted to say, but chose to stick to task. He needed Cell to focus all his attention on him and give 18 time to escape.

"I killed them," he said with a wicked grin, "with my bare hands."

18 was barely conscious as the life was squeezed out of her. At the moment, she was in shock. She had thought that Trunks was the only person capable of succeeding her in power, but now here she was, struggling to fight back against an unknown foe. Apparently, Trunks knew this foe.

Is that why he was adamant in getting rid of her, because he knew? She was upset with herself for being this weak, needlessly putting herself in danger all because she wanted to shove Trunks' control of her in his face. Bulma was not going to be happy, if she even got out of here to experience the mother's wrath.

Cell stared incredulously at the boy. "Well, your jokes aren't funny, boy."

"Really? I was told that I had a knack for making people laugh."

"Where are they?!"

"Like I said...dead."

Cell glared at the impudent child. He would force him to reveal what he knows. He looked at the girl, Which was all Trunks needed to act.

He disappeared, quickly catching Cell off guard and grabbing 18. He appeared a few yards from the android and held 18's barely conscious body to his. 18 didn't have it in her to fight it. Too dazed from her assualt, she dropped her head on his shoulder, slowly catching her breath.

"How?" Cell said in shock. He didn't even sense the child; he's speed was undetectable. Who was this saiyan? Was this even Vegeta's son?

Trunks looked down at the tired girl in his arms. He had half a mind to drop her when she started moving to get more comfortable on his form, but quickly focused his gaze back on his enemy.

"Awww," Cell cooed sadistically. "Young love."

Trunks had to stifle an indignant sputter. He was not going out with 18!

"Even so, I will kill you; and since you won't give me the information I require, I will kill your lover as well!"

"That's it!" Trunks screamed; the ground shook as he commenced transforming into a super saiyan.

"Oh," Cell said as he watched the spectacle, "Interesting."

Trunks needed to get 18 away from the area and then deal with Cell. So as quick as possible, he disappeared and came back in a second. 18 was no longer in his hold.

Cell gaped at the blonde. That shouldn't be possible, but the kid was faster than him?

"Now, I can deal with you accordingly."

"You seem to think very highly of yourself," Cell bit out, anger radiating in his eyes.

"That's because I know you, Cell."

Cell gasped when he heard his name uttered.

"I know your intentions and I've seen what you're capable of in this form."

He even knew about the forms?

"Who are you? How do you know me?!" Cell demanded.

"Who am I?" Trunks repeated, cold eyes staring emotionlessly at the green android. "Your executioner."

With that, he charged at the android, dodging his tail and hitting Cell straight in the face, sending him flying into nearby debris.

Cell blasted out of the concrete. A menacing roar ripped from his throat. He looked at his target and was surprised to see Trunks' impassive demeanour.

"You think you can defeat me?!" Cell shouted.

"No... I know I can beat you."

"You're arrogant," Cell commented. "It will be your undoing."

"Enough talk," Trunks said as he shot into the air. He didn't hesitate, shooting punches and kicks with Cell as the intended target.

Cell mimicked his movement, albeit with more difficulty. The lightning strikes moved in sync as each tried to get the decisive blow. It soon became evident to Cell that even though he was working hard, Trunks wasn't even putting much effort. The brat was playing with him, Cell silently fumed.

Trunks saw an opening and struck Cell in the stomach, kneed him in the face and kicked him to the ground. Cell fell with decimating force, creating a gargantuan crater.

Trunks smiled in victory. It would not be long before he completely destroyed the green freak, but he was at least getting there.

Cell slowly started to get out of the crater. Eyes wide as if realising something.

"How could I be so blind?" Cell said to himself. "She was right under my nose the whole time. How could I not see it? She's still here, and if that's the case, then he is as well."

"What are you blabbing about now?" Trunks questioned half-heartedly.

Cell looked at him with a wicked grin, his eyes were crazed. "You thought you could hide them from me? I already figured out that both 17 and 18 are somewhere around here. Even her black hair couldn't keep me from knowing it was her."

Damn! Trunks realised the error of his calculation. He had no choice but to kill Cell now, or risk having 18 found. He charged at the green freak, intending on fighting him further, but he realised, too late, that Cell had baited him.

The android jumped into the air and caught the racing saiyan off guard. Quickly putting his hands near his head, Cell shouted, "Solar Flare!"

Immediately Trunks was blinded by the light. Trunks did not know how many times he was going to curse himself for falling for such a cheap trick. He had lost his advantage, and now was at the mercy of Cell's next move.

As Trunks quickly anticipated, Cell tried to strike him with his tail, but the temporarily blind lavenderhead dodged with aimless and desperate movements.

Upon realising he could not absorb Trunks, Cell drew some distance. Fine by him, let the saiyan die.

"Ka..." He put his hands to his side and started gathering ki energy, using Goku's famous attack to aid in the destruction of Trunks.

Trunks flew around, trying to buy time so his eyes could adjust. Much to his chagrin, he had no idea where the hell Cell was located.

"Mae..." Cell looked on, amused by the fly in the air. He cackled.

Trunks knew that time was short but he didn't want to fall for any of Cell's trap. So he continued with trying to evade everything.

"Ha... Mae.. Ha... Mae...! Ha!" Cell fired his attack, reveling in the power that discharged from his hands. The boy would never survive. His arrogance was truly his death bed.

Trunks felt the power coming towards him, but it had been too late to make decisive movement. The attack was strong; he wasn't sure what his fate held.

He berated himself immensely for bieng so brash, it was gonna cost him. How could he be so sure of himself to the point of arrogance? He prepared for pain, as minuscule as it was. He heard the familiar boom that signified imapct...

But he never got hit.

Once his eyes adjusted, he quickly looked around, only to spot 18 huddled a few feet away from him, on the ground; her face looked battered; her left shoulder looked dislocated and her side was bleeding. The whole thing painted a clear picture for the demi-saiyan.

Android 18 just took a hit for him.

Trunks just floated in the air, completely shocked with the revelation.

18 saved him.

"I was wondering when you'd come back, 18," Cell said as he sauntered to the unconscious girl. "Although I didn't expect you to risk your life for a lonely human, you still came to me none the less."

18 hardly moved as Cell gained on her. Once Cell loomed over the battered girl, he laughed, the thought of completion sending pleasurable tingles down his body. The tip of his tale opened, creating a whole large enough to absorb 18's entire body. He was going to enjoy hearing her pleas and screams as he had his way with her.

Whether it was his pride or seeing 18 in such a condition, Trunks roared, his power rising dramatically as rage overtook him.

Cell had been too distracted to notice Trunks, and the saiyan was swiftly on him, trouncing the green android with so much anger that it greatly shocked Cell.

"You monster!" Trunks fumed as he continued his relentless assualt, "Your reign of terror ends here."

Cell took heavy blows to his body; he couldn't even respond against such a strong opponent. The only good thing out of this was the fact that he could regenerate, no matter how much damage he took. So let Vegeta's son have his fun, it wouldn't last for long.

Once Trunks was done hammering Cell, he gathered a large ki blast, the energy cackling viciously. "I know all about your power to regenerate."

Cell's eyes widened in horror. How?!

"So say goodbye, you disgusting freak!"

18 groggily opened her eyes. At first, it was too bright and she squinted, but when she adjusted she took in her surroundings, completely surprised.

She was on a ship, the familiar one that she and Trunks had used to travel to New Bay. She looked to her side, and indeed spotted Trunks, steering the vessel.

He spared her a glance. Noticing that she was awake, he started, "I see you're awake."

Well obviously, 18 would have said, but the pain stifled her retort.

"You took a huge hit from Cell. Frankly, I'm surprised you survived that."

Of course he got no response. Soon only awkward silence was present.

18 took the opportunity to look at her form. She had a sense of deja vu as she eyed her bandaged body. That concentration soon changed to bewilderement when she noticed that she was wearing Trunks' jacket.

"You were cold," Trunks said evenly, as if reading her mind, "That's the best I could do to repay the favour. I hope next time you'll listen when I tell you to run."

18 only looked at him curiously.

"I took you to the nearest hospital and they patched you up; you're lucky that they didn't recognize you. Don't worry about the parts either; I got them."

"..."

"Why?" Trunks demanded, finally turning to glare at her. "Why did you do that?"

This time 18 found her voice, albeit with difficulty. "Your mother...would be angry at...me...if...I let you die."

Trunks eyes widened. He was surprised that Bulma meant more to 18 than he had originally thought. To think that Android 18 would willingly risk her life so as not to disappoint a human, someone so below her? Trunks was actually at a loss for words.

"Beside..." 18 rasped, "I want to be the one to kick your ass."

For some reason unknown to him, Trunks knew that 18 was actually being affectionate towards him instead of truthfull. He really didn't know how to feel about that.

"You're a fool," He scolded. "Cell's attack would have stung a little, but that's just it."

That made her eyes widen. She did that for nothing? To think that he far exceeded her to the extent where she seemed like a insignificant fly. Her surprised soon turned into a scowl. "Now... I really wanna kick your ass."

"Tch. Like you ever can," Trunks settled for scoffing and concentrated on piloting. "This will be the only time I thank you. So thanks."

18 nodded, a bit weirded out with his attitude. When she looked at him, she wondered what he was thinking about. He seemed very torn. She could see it in his eyes.

Trunks was indeed torn. 18 was a monster, but do monsters do what she did? No, even so, he still hated her guts. This little experienced changed nothing between them. As soon as his mother was done with her, Trunks was going to destroy the android and avenge all casualties that fell prey to her.

He was sure of it...

Well, he did try to convince himself at least.

**Author's Notes: I changed the little I felt necessary in this chapter. Thanks so much for your reviews.**


	4. Succumbing to hate

**Author's Notes: Thank you very much for your reviews. I understand that I will have to change some things in order for the fic to appeal more to you guys. Forgive me for that, I didn't expect reception like this. So thanks again for your support...**

"Get out," Trunks growled at the raven-head in front of him. He just couldn't stand the sight of her. Even if she did protect him all those weeks ago, she was still his most hated enemy. The thought of her still living while his comrades and friends met swift deaths served as a constant reminder to destroy 18 whenever the chance arrived, and boy was he waiting for that chance.

He hated her so much. Behind that flawless body was nothing more than a machine in his book; every single day spent with 18 was a constant pain that drove him to the brink of madness.

He should have killed her; he should have! But thanks to his indecision and stupid plan to preserve the android for research, he was stuck living with her every day. He didn't know how long it would be before he snapped and just killed her on the spot. Restraint was one thing he was never good at, his Saiyan heritage reiterated the fact. He inexorably convinced himself that the opportunity would come; he would just need to hang on for a little longer, just a little. It was the only way he could get by these days. The tension was as thick as it could get.

18's passive stare only infuriated him. She didn't care; she didn't care that she killed so many people; she didn't care that some of those people were close to him. She was nothing but a monster. To hell with her! She didn't deserve to live, not after everything she did to this world.

"Your mother's calling you for breakfast," 18 said monotonically. "I'll be taking a shower."

"Don't even think about using mine!" Trunks gritted out.

18 nonchalantly shrugged at his venom and made to leave.

"I mean it, android!" Trunks roared as he stood from his bed and marched after the girl.

18 stopped and rolled her eyes. Every single day of this was slowly becoming unbearable.

It didn't help that she was literally forced to live with the Saiyan and his mother, but to be constantly threatened was getting old.

She hated his guts. In fact, she hated everything. Living with Trunks was a repulsive predicament that was driving her off the wall. She was reaching her boiling point, the extent where she wouldn't care whether she lived or died. It was only a matter of time before the tension indeed turned murderous.

"I'm talking to you, android!" That was it. She had put up with so much in her captivity and she finally had enough of him. He killed her brother and forced her to co-operate in this ludicrous scheme. No more.

She whirled around and fixed a hate-filled glare at the lavender man. "What are you gonna do about, huh?!"

Trunks bristled at the shout. If he had to be honest with himself, this was the first time in months that he had ever seen 18 show such malignity towards him. He mirrored her blaze. "Listen, bitch-"

"No, you listen, you freaking bastard!" 18 screamed while stomping to the Saiyan. "I've had enough of your bullshit! You think you can just talk to me like that forever!? I'm not your punching bag and I will not take this crap anymore!"

Trunks growled at her, the warning missed by the irate raven-haired girl.

18 provokingly started poking his chest. If she had been in her right state of mind then she would have known she was mere inches away from death. "I killed your friends but you're not that innocent! You killed my brother, the only person that mattered in this ugly world and I'm never getting him back! I hate you! I wish I could kill yo-"

18 felt the wind knocked out of her as Trunks grabbed the collar of her shirt, shoving her hard against a wall. She couldn't even gasp out her surprise when she felt the heat and static electricity of a ball of ki near her face.

Trunks snarled like an animal. His face had become flushed with anger and all he could see was red. "I've had enough of you!"

The ball of energy drew nearer, the slow pace agonizingly more foreboding with each second.

18 could tell that Trunks was losing himself in hate.

But so was she.

She pumped as much strength into her hands as she could, preparing to shove him away, but Trunks surprised her by throwing her across the corridor. She hit the end harshly and fell in a heap.

Trunks' breathing was haggard. He continued to struggle and calm himself. All he wanted to do was bash her face in, but his mother...

18 regained her footing and stood up leisurely. As soon as she regained her poise, she fixed the Saiyan with a look that greatly surprised him. Those eyes; it was the same look he had the displeasure of seeing throughout his suffering at her hands. It didn't matter that she was still disguised; she looked like the 18 of old.

"No more, monkey. Let's cut the bullshit. Fight me."

She was met with stunned silence.

"I said fight me!"

"..."

"If you don't... The first chance I get, I'm turning your mother into a corpse." She looked like she meant it and Trunks' glare turned arduous.

"You bitch. Fine, I'm going to kill you, consequances be damned."

18 took a fighting stance.

"Not here," Trunks said. "We gonna finish this without involving anyone else."

"... Fine; I lead." No sooner did she say those words, 18 shot into the air outside, breaking a window in the process.

Trunks would have fumed if he was calmer, but killing 18 was his main priority. He shot after her and watched as she flew in a seemingly random ditection. To make sure he didn't lose her, Trunks expeditiously followed - circumspect to keep his distance. He would let her choose her deathbed; it would be the least he would give.

18 glanced over her shoulder as she flew at high speeds. There he was, following her. He must have thought so highly of himself. Taking time to measure her and then finish her off. That fucking bastard.

She stopped suddenly, and Trunks was quick to follow. They never took their eyes off each other. Both bodies begging to release pent up emotions. Trunks could see her cool and calculated anger, but she was not like him.

He felt absolute rage.

She ruined his life, and for the better part of the year, kept ruining his life. He would apologise to his mother when he got home. Right here and now, it was time for his revenge.

18 stared at the demi-saiyan in front of her. It was no fact that the time they spend together would lead up to this, but she wasn't going to sit idly by while these humans destroyed her. If she was going to die then it would be by her terms. She knew she was meeting her end, but so what? What was there to live for? No one in this world would ever accept her. No one would ever be there for her.

No one would ever love her.

So this was it. This was her last stand. She would be shocked if she even survived Trunks' wrath, but then again, it didn't mean she would let up on her side. She was going to die fighting.

Trunks starting gathering ki in his body. He could feel the life force strengthening both his soul and senses. He didn't plan to enjoy what was to transpire, but he planned on making the memory last for as long as the android could move.

18 increased her power level to maximum capacity. She knew he couldn't detect her at all, and as little advantage as that gave her, she planned on using it.

She attacked first, going straight at him with an arm cocked back. As soon as she was in reach, she shot her hand foward - she might have just a chance if Trunks remained in his base form and didn't change...

Only to barely miss him.

Trunks evaded by moving his head to the side. She knicked his cheek, but left herself quite open. He took the opportunity to blast a punch of his own, pointedly missing the android with the blow and allowing him time to get closer.

18 realised the deception too late as Trunks kneed her in the gut. She hunched over in the air, her eyes as wide as saucers. She was sure that if she was human, she would be vomitting all over the place.

Trunks' knee lifted her a little higher, providing the Saiyan with a perfect angle to pick a strike. He was ready to deliver another punch, but 18 beat him to it, using her seemingly helpless form to punch the Saiyan in the face - forcing Trunks to fly into some already damaged buildings before hitting the ground with a large explosion and plump smoke.

18 was finding it difficult to breath. He was still in his base form, right? If that was so, how come he wasn't easy to beat?

Trunks slowly ascended from the rubble. His face was a mask of anger as he glared at the girl.

18's eyes widened a fraction as she stared at Trunks' form. She could finally see what made it difficult to defeat him. His aura, as small as it was, emitted a gold hue. She could see feint lines criss-crossing all over his body. So, he wasn't using that blonde power, but something in between? She should have expected it. He wasn't taking any chances, but he was choosing to fight close to her level, probably just to spite her; she felt her anger flare at the thought.

She charged at him, intending to drive her head through his abdomen. She stiften her body and increased her speed.

Trunks just raised an eyebrow at such a audacious tactic. What a fool, he thought condescendingly. He raised his hands into the air and molded them together. Using her momentum against her, he moved to her opposite, and slammed both arms on her back.

She shot like a bullet, hitting the ground with bone-shattering force. A crater large enough to swallow a building prominently displayed.

Trunks hovered over the gargantuan hole. The smoke made it difficult to peer inside, but he was prepared for anything that came out.

A small hole formed in the smoke and 18 emerged, looking worse for wear. Her breathing was laboured and erratic. Cuts and bruises were all over her.

She was used to it by now.

Trunks stared hard at his enemy. He noticed her eyes had shifted. No longer did they hold callous malice, only grim resignation. He could tell she would never submit willingly. She wanted to die with her head held high instead of cowering in a corner.

He would be more than happy to assist.

He roared as he transformed into a Super Saiyan. This fight was as good as done.

Watching as her slim chance at survival slipped away, 18 shook her head. She looked at Trunks and screamed herself, charging at him with everything she had. It was all or nothing at this point.

Trunks could easily see her movements as clear as day. She was even more desperate to finish him off. He raised a hand, and when 18 came near, smacked her face - causing her to fly into building after building. The abandoned city they found themselves in was looking sorely like useless wreckage.

All 18 could do was grunt as she hit wall after wall. She was sure once she landed on the ground Trunks was going to finish her off. She could do little but brace herself. It did little good; the ground was still harsh when she made contact. She was barely clinging on to consciousness once she realised her situation.

This was really it. No more fighting; no more hurt and anger; no more tolerating Trunks's presence. She was going to see 17 again. The thought bought her a strange sensation of content. Finally, all her pain will end...

Then she heard something.

At first, it was too feint - whether it was from the pain or distnace - but once she focused, she could hear someone crying.

Who the hell would be here? Past surviviors? The possibilty was there. But if that was the case then they picked the wrong place and the wrong time to be here.

She looked to her side and was shocked to see a blurry image in front of her. She could scarcely tell that a little girl was a few distances away from her. More than that, the child was in danger. The ceiling above her looked ready to give in, but the little girl seemed to be focusing more on a prone body that she was clingling to. 18 just watched it all.

Motionless.

Humans were so pathetic and fragile. It just took the smallest of things to set them off into self destruction. The girl looked ailingly skinny, probably due to lack of food. Maybe dying would do the little thing a favour.

A huge chunk of roof crumbled and started falling to the ground, heading straight for the child. The kid gasp in shock as she stared above her, but it was too late; she would never be fast enough to dodge something like that.

What a horrible way to die.

"Damn android," Trunks murmured as he searched around different buildings. He berated himself for putting too much power with the slap he gave the blonde now raven-haired.

"How can killing something so weak be so hard?" What was it about 18 that made it burdensome to kill her? It should be easy, but Trunks was finding it very strenuous.

It wasn't the fact that he was more powerful. It seemed like it was more on the fact that 18 had really good luck on her side - not that he believed in that sort of thing.

She won't last for long. It would only be a matter of time before he found her.

A random building crumbled a few meters away from him. He could have ignored it, but he wasn't leaving anything to chance. He flew to the abolished building and looked at the large debris of broken infrastructure. If 18 was in there then it was going to take a while to remove the rubble and find her.

However, his job was done for him. A ki blast alerted him to 18's most likely location. Trunks' head whipped in the direction of the light.

"Found you." He flew to the spot, all the while preparing his "Burning Attack" finisher. He was careful to remain cautious since he couldn't detect her energy. When he saw something eerily similar to black hair, he landed delicately on the ground. He stared at the mop just a few feet away from him. It was definitely 18. She wasn't even moving, but he stopped caring as soon as he gave in to his rage.

"Haaaa!" He started forming a bigger attack. "No more excuses! Here and now, you -" he couldn't finish as he gasped.

He hadn't noticed it before, but 18's body was covered in rocks. Not just that...

There was a girl with her.

That's right, 18 body was over a little girl's. Trunks could see another mop of raven that belonged to a little head. Said head was peaking visibly over 18 shoulders. To anyone, it looked like 18 protected the child by using her own body as a shield against fallen ruin. Trunks had suspicion that he wasn't far from the truth.

She saved somebody, again? She risked her own life, again?! What the hell was wrong with that android, or cyborg, or whatever! No. This had to be a coincidence. 18 was fending for her own life; there was no reason she'd risk it.

He cancelled his attack and approached the pair. Yep, it was a little girl alright, looking no older than five-years-old. Her eyes looked lifeless, making the Saiyan sigh. So it was just another dead body that 18's own conveniently landed on. Great, he just needed to move the little girl away and then finish off the android.

As he got closer, he noticed that the girl was clutching to 18's body quite painfully. Wait, wasn't she supposed to be dead? She didn't look like she was moving.

Oh well, Trunks shrugged, all the more reason to get her out of harms way.

He drew nearer, until he was just inches from the raven duo. He heard the girl whispering something repeatedly, confirming that she was indeed alive. The Super Saiyan was surprised he missed the signs. He focused his hearing to discern the girl's speech...

"... M-mommy... M-mommy..."

Trunks thought that his ears were playing with him. Did she just say mommy? Was she trying to call for her mother? The poor thing. He would help her out as soon as he dealt with the android.

He crouched down. Careful to be slow, he grabbed a hold of the girl's hands and started pulling them away from 18's body.

"No! Mommy, wake up!"

Trunks retracted his hands as if he had been burned. He fixed the girl with a warm smile. "Hey, don't worry. Everything will be just fine. I'll help your find your mommy, okay?"

Frightful eyes pierced into his green. The girl didn't utter a word. Only silenced existed as the two continued to look at one another.

Deciding to try again, Trunks offered a friendly hand to the girl. "Come on, let's get you somewhere safe and find your mother."

The moment he said mother, the girl's stare shifted to 18. For some reason unknown to him, alarm bells were blaring in his head.

"Come on," he coaxed again. "Let's get you out of here."

"Mommy?" The girl called while gently shaking 18's unconscious form. "Mommy, wake up; a scary man wants to take me away."

Trunks felt like fainting. He could do nothing but gape at the girl. 18 was the mommy she was calling for?! The girl thought 18 was her mother?! Trunks didn't know if fate loved to play with him, but he was started to believe that very fact.

"Hey now," he called gently, trying to be reassuring to the little thing. "That's not your mommy, but I'll help you find her."

The little girl frowned at him, life slowly coming back in her eyes. "She's right here." Her frowned soon turned to tears. "Mommy, the man you send to protect me is dead! Bad men shot him!"

With that, the girl started bawling her eyes out, with little hiccups escaping on occasion.

Trunks could only look on in awkward silence, wondering what the hell was wrong with this planet.

After some time he decided that enough was enough. "I'm sorry, but she's not your mother. She's a bad-"

"You're wrong," was the anguished cry.

Trunks chalked off her behaviour to shock. Maybe she was using 18 as a way to shield her from memories of the people she lost? Maybe her real mother was actually dead and she was using 18 as a replacement? That only made Trunks pity her more.

The girl shifted out of 18's grasp, allowing Trunks to see what she was wearing; a white dress filled with dirt, black sneakers and a little denim jacket. She rummeged through the jacket, producing her slightly torn photo.

"Look!" She irritably said, shoving the picture into Trunks' hands.

Not possible, not possible, not possible, Trunks mentally repeated - too afraid of what he might see. He slowly looked at the picture, and his wide eyes increased in size.

This could not be real. This had to be someone's idea of a sick joke. What he was staring at was a mirror image of 18's disguised self. Even though her eyes were a bit off, her hair was significantly longer, and she was pregnant, she looked like 18's twin.

What. The. Fuck?

"See!" the girl exclaimed. "I told you so!"

If it wasn't for seeing life blossom into her eyes, Trunks would have childishly rebuked her. All he could do was sigh and shake his head.

"It's one problem after another. God, why me?"

What was he going to do now? It was obvious it would be impossible to convince the child that the person she was staring at wasn't her mother.

"What's your name?" Trunks settled for.

The little girl huffed. "I don't talk to strangers."

Trunks' brow twitched, but he understoond the girl's reluctance.

"Okay, let's not be strangers anymore. Hi, my name is Trunks -" He stretched a hand -" and you are?"

The girl looked at him suspiciously, no doubt untrustworthy of him so far.

"... Blair."

"It's nice to meet you, Blair."

"..."

"Okay! So... um... your mommy isn't feeling well. We need to get her out of here and some place that will help her."

Blair looked at him waringly, but nodded her head in consent.

Trunks smiled at her. He was feeling much more calmer after venting on 18. With that came the guilt of taking things too far. He had to convince himself on more than one occasion that 18 was nothing more than a monster, but looking at her now, so fragile and beaten, he didn't know what to think. She saved someone's life, someone she didn't even know. Could monsters do that, twice?

Trunks was so confused. He didn't know what to think anymore; his emotions were numb when he looked at 18. He always wondered if there was a reason his mother was giving her a chance to just live her days...

His mother! Oh crap, he was in the deepest shit imaginable. Bulma would surely scold him to no end for losing himself in anger and nearly killing 18 again.

It just felt wrong now. The fight felt wrong. He was trained to never give into emotions like hate, and he conceded that 18 had been through the same thing since she lost someone that meant more than this world to her. He could never forgive her for what she did. There will always be hate in him for as long is he lived.

But did he really want this? To live a life where his being fastered with revenge and a taste for blood. Hate changed people into blood-thirsty animals, and he could feel the emotion rapidly changing him as well. Was it worth his humanity if it was for the greater good? His mother had been much wiser in her decisions concerning 18 than he had. All he had stuck to was a one-tracked mind that only seeked vengeance. Gohan would be disappointed in him - all those lessons for nothing.

Did that mean he was the bad guy though? He was avenging his master's death; he was avenging the death of his friends; his father. Didn't that mean he would be changed either way? That he would lose what little innocence he had left and turn into a monster himself?

"Hey, Trunks! Hurry up! Mommy's hurt!" Blair shouted, effectively snapping the Saiyan from his musings - if he could call it that.

Trunks stared at the prone woman. It was than he made his decision.

"Sorry about that, I had a lot on my mind," Trunks said.

He took out a capsule from his pocket and threw it at a distance. There was a poof sound accompanied by smoke. Once the smoke dissipated, a small craft stood proudly.

Blair stared at the contraption in awe while Trunks scooped the android in his arms. It seemed so condradictory. A few minutes ago, he was close to killing her; now, he was saving her. This was the second time that he let her live and he didn't know if he was getting soft or not.

"Come on than. Let's get her to safety." He knew full well that since Blair thought 18 was her mother she would not leave her, and as bad as it was, he couldn't hope to convince the girl of anything concerning 18.

Blair nervously followed Trunks into the aircraft. Once everyone was in place Trunks operated the system and guided the aircraft off the ground.

Blair whimpered and sought her mother's hand for comfort, enduring the turbulence.

Trunks glanced at the girl, taking note of how easily affectionate she was to 18. "Is this your first time flying?"

A stiff nod was his answer and Trunks couldn't help but smile at how cute Blair's determined face looked. "Don't worry. Once you get used to it, it's actually really nice."

He stared ahead of himself and flew to Capsule Corp.

Bulma had been worried sick. She had asked 18 to bring her son to breakfast and she honestly thought nothing of it. They didn't like each other, but at least they tolerated each other, right? Wrong, she had ran upstairs when she heard rough noises, only to witness Trunks' shoot out of a brocken window. She had screamed after him, but he was long gone.

She knew Trunks' and 18 fought, the damage to her corridor upstairs was proof of that. She was worried about them, both of them. 18 may have been someone she despised in the beginning but giving her a chance to live like a normal person would was the best decision Bulma ever made. It gave 18 a glimpse of what it was like to be human again. In sparing her life temporarily, Bulma was treated to instances of the real 18, who was just someone lost and lonely.

18's crimes were inforgivable, but Bulma felt more resoulte in allowing the blonde to live. She might never forgive 18, but she could still accept her.

That was if she was still alive.

Knowing Trunks and his hatred for the cyborg, Bulma feared the worst. Any moment now, Trunks would come home and tell her that he had no choice but to kill 18, and even add an apology to soften her annoyance.

"Oh God," she moaned, running a hand over her face. "I should have seen this coming."

She heard the familiar roar of the aircraft she knew Trunks used. She scrambled for the front door, already expecting a long process of tongue lashing.

She opened the door and saw Trunks' craft in the front yard. She frowned and started approaching it.

When she saw the doors of the machine opening, she called, "Trunks, you better have a good explan... ation."

Trunks looked sheepish, which surprised Bulma immensely. She had been expecting to see him angry or something close to the feeling, but this?

"Hey, mom." Trunks greeted with a nervous chuckle.

Bulma fixed him with a stern look. "Talk."

"O-okay," Trunks nervously stumbled. "Uhh... 18 and I got into a fight."

"Mmhm," Bulma nodded, waiting for him to continue.

"So... We went to this abandoned city to... you know... and..."

"And what? Did you kill her?" Bulma questioned, failing to hide her irritation.

"No!" Trunks blurted out. "... But I was close."

"Trunks Briefs," Bulma started, only to be cut off by her stuttering son.

"I-I'm sorry! You can yell at me later. She needs your help," Trunks rambled.

Bulma huffed. "And whose fault is that?"

"She said she was going to kill you!"

"And you believed her?"

"W-what?"

"If she really wanted to kill me, don't you think I would be dead by now? She had plenty of opportunities to take my life, especially when you weren't around the house. She was probably saying that to provoke you, and you fell for it."

Trunks bowed his head in surrender.

Bulma sighed. "I know it's hard, sweety, but I don't like this. Haven't you had enough of the constant fighting and hate? Don't you want to move on from this?"

"I can't move on from this," Trunks stated. "It would be like forgeting all our loved ones and what they stood for."

"You shouldn't forget those close to you, Trunks, but it doesn't mean you should let this... hate run your life. You will never find happiness."

"What about you, mom? You lost dad, a man you loved so much. How can you ever move on from this and be happy?"

"I have you, don't I?" Bulma stated as if it were obvious. "You're what keeps me strong... You don't have to forgive her, you know?"

"..."

"It's all up to you, find piece within yourself, Trunks."

She started walking to the aircraft, leaving Trunks with deep - troubling - thoughts.

"Eh, Trunks? Mind explaining this to me?" Bulma queried from the side of the ship.

Trunks turned his head to his mother, and promptly face-palmed.

"Who are you, lady?" Blair questioned in her seat, still holding her mother's hand.

Bulma fixed Trunks with an expectant stare and all the Saiyan could do was sweat-drop.

18 slowly opened her eyes. Once they adjusted to the harsh light, she could tell she was in Bulma's underground bunker.

"I'm getting tired of this," she muttered. She made to move but felt something on her middle. She looked down and noticed the girl from the abandoned city, using her belly as a make-shift pillow. This was not expected.

"You've been out of it for two days."

"Screw you," she retorted without even turning to see you had talked to her. Who else would it be with that voice?

"Ouch. This is how you repay the guy that spared your life?"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" 18 said as she turned to look at Trunks, huddled in a corner. "Why the hell won't you kill me and just get it over with?"

Trunks stood from his position and walked to 18. "You know, I've been asking myself that very same question lately."

18 blinked at him. She had not expected such an open answer.

"I keep telling myself that you're this mindless demon that only thirsts for blood. For months I convinced myself that there was nothing to you but evil personified."

"Oh bite m-"

"But I was wrong."

18 stopped her tirade when she heard him. She just stared at Trunks, not sure what to say.

"Did you really mean it when you threatened my mother's life?"

"What does it m-"

"Just answer the question."

"... No, I didn't mean it... Are you happy now?"

Trunks looked over at the girl sleeping on 18's belly. "You saved her life."

"So what?!" 18 demanded.

"I'm not going to ask you why you did it or even your reasoning for saving mine all those months ago."

"And?" 18 prompted.

Trunks chose to change the subject. "She thinks you're her mother."

18 blanched, visibly surprised. "She what?"

"She thinks you're her mother, and won't listen to anyone who tells her otherwise."

18 stared hard at the demi-saiyan, then a gaze shifted to the little girl sleeping on her. For minutes 18 did nothing, but then, just as slowly, started stretching her hand.

Trunks' instinct to protect anyone against the android kicked in. He was a breath away from stopping whatever 18 was doing, but for some reason, he chose not to make a move and watch.

18's hand reached the little girl's head. It lingered for what felt like an eternity before slowly carrassing the black locks.

"Her hair is dirty," the cyborg murmured as she continued to run her hand gently on the girl's bristles.

Trunks stopped trying to dissuade the picture in front of him. This was really 18, plain and simple.

He briefly wondered if pigs were flying somewhere.

"I'm not her mother," 18 said slowly, but she sounded... indecisive?

"No, you're not. Her real mother is dead." Trunks said.

18 stared at him with wide eyes. "How do you know that?"

"We asked her a few questions while you were out. We came to the conclusion through her explanation. She told us that she never really knew her mother, but the man that her mother send to protect her said that her mother died when she was a baby due to illness, and her father left before she was born... Blair didn't believe him and chose to stick to hope that she would see one, of not both her parents someday."

"Blair?" 18 asked.

Trunks nodded to the girl. "That's her."

18 looked at Blair while Trunks continued.

"She held on to a photo of her mother, since her father was never in her life."

Trunks took out the photo from his pocket. He drew nearer to 18 and handed it to her.

18 stared at the photo in shock. "I-I..."

"Scary, isn't it?" Trunks said from the side of the bed. "To think there was someone out there that looked so much like you."

18 was surprised with the similarities she had to the woman in the picture. But... This woman looked kind and innocent, with a beautiful smile for accentuation. Even if they shared a face, they weren't that much alike, were they?

18 didn't know what to make of the situation and was even more surprised with what Trunks said next.

"I want us to form a truce."

She looked at the Saiyan as if he grew a second head. "Have you been drinking?"

"If you meant drinking juice then yes, I've been drinking plenty." Trunks supplied. "My mom believes there is some good in you and out of the respect I have for her and the respect I have for Gohan's teachings, I'm opting for a truce."

18 processed his words and replied, "What are the conditions?"

"You never harm a human again and you'll help out whenever possible."

"Tch. Isn't that what I've been doing for the past few months?"

"I mean it, 18. In return, I will give you the space and time you want," Trunks replied.

She sighed. "Fine, I agree on a truce."

Trunks stretched his hand. "I don't think I can ever forgive you for killing my comrades."

"I don't think I can ever forgive you for killing my brother." She mimicked his movements.

They shook hands.

"I wonder how long it will be before we're at each other's throats again?"

Trunks shrugged. At least they could settle for temporary peace.

Their thoughts were interrupted by a yawn. They both stared as Blair opened her eyes and looked at 18.

"Blair," 18 said, more on experimentally trying the name out, but she realised too late that she said it out loud.

Blair's eyes lit up like a christmas tree and 18 felt something in her chest lurch at the sight.

What the hell was that?

18 decided not to focus on the feeling and keep her concentration on the girl. She was startled with what she saw.

As tears of joy streamed down her face, Blair stared at 18 with so much adoration and love that it stunned the android.

"Mommy," Blair whispered happily.

18's mouth hung open with no sound. She had originally planned to tell Blair the truth. But who would the child go to if she did?

Blair was basically alone with no one to care for her. Hell, she looked unhealthy now.

Should that be 18's problem though? She never liked humans due to her past. Why should this moment be any differen-

"I'm so happy," Blair screemed as she crushed 18 in a hug. "I was so worried, mommy!"

18 instinctively hugged back. She was surprised with herself. She would never give in to a human this easily. She should be throwing the girl off her. She was supposed to hate everything and everyone. So why...?

Trunks just stared at the interaction as if someone told him the dragon balls were back. He never would have thought that 18 allowed anyone to be close to her, but here it was, as clear as day.

That made him think though.

What did he really know about 18, aside the fact that she was the bane of humanity? What was 18 really like without all the anger and hurt? Should he even care? They made a truce, but should he go further than that?

Nope, he still didn't like her, and found her somewhat still ubearable to be near. He knew one thing for sure though, since 18 now had a 'daughter' that refused to leave - which the blonde didn't seem to be objective to - he was going to find his life much more irritating.

'I just knew letting her live would come to bite me in the ass.'

In a far distant area, near mountains, two figures floated in the air.

"Quite disappointing. This world holds little competition. We could just blast it to pieces."

"Patients. Dr Gero didn't design us to be impulsive."

"... Yes he did."

"... Okay, but not pig-headed. We'll find something worthwhile soon. Just be patient."

"Right... patient."

**Author's Notes: Sorry guys, I kinda rushed it, but please let me know what you think.**


	5. Truth

"You'll feel a slight sting," Bulma said from her desk, working on her computer.

"I'm used to it by now," 18 replied.

Bulma nodded at her and typed in a few characters.

18 felt the slight burning sensation but gave no visible indication.

They were in the underground bunker for 18's scheduled testing. 18 was on the steal bed, fully clothed and wearing a helmet with dozens of wires attached to it.

The android didn't really care that she was a test subject. It wasn't that bad anymore.

"Okay!" Bulma said, typing as fast as her fingers would let her.

Numbers and figures littered the screen and Bulma took careful precaution to burn every detail to memory.

"You know, Bulma," 18 said, " I never liked these tests in the beginning, but now, it really doesn't matter to me."

"Well, I should hope so. I've been using my knowledge to make equipment that will constitue in your comfort during these tests."

"I-It's not that... I do want to do these test... to help you."

Bulma glanced over her shoulder. "Did I just hear you right?"

"Um..."

Bulma snickered. "Careful, 18. If the world figures out you've gone soft then people might take advantage of you."

"I have not gone soft! I'm still a killing machine!"

"..."

"..."

Bulma finally lost her composure and started laughing. 18 soon joined her. Both of the women found the humour to be a breath of fresh air.

Once the laughing stopped, 18 started, more seriously. "Don't you hate me though? If it wasn't for me and my brother than you'd still have a family."

"Vegeta, Goku, Krillin, Yamcha..." Bulma sighed at the fond memories. She looked at 18 and noticed her stiff form. "I wish I could see them again, even if it was for just a few minutes."

18's mouth formed a thin line. She felt awkward, not sure if she should comment or not.

"I have a theory," Bulma said. "It's about you, 18."

"Me?" 18 said in surprise.

"Yes, you-aha! It's done!" Bulma said as her computer informed her of the completion of her task. She gathered all the hard copied documentation and started skimming through them.

18 waited for the mother to continue with what she was saying. The android found herself quite interested in Bulma's 'theory'.

But Bulma just skimmed through pages and pages of paper, looking more bored with each moment passing.

When her patients ran out, 18 decided to take matters into her own hands. "Bulma?"

"Hmm?"

"You said something-"

"I knew it!"

"Huh?" 18 said, surprised with Bulma's shout.

"Hold that thought!" Bulma quickly said, hastily making for the stairs. The mother was gone before 18 could blink.

What was up with her? 18 wondered.

"Come on, come on. Hurry up!" she heard, already knowing it was Bulma.

"Oh come on, mom. I was still eating!" and that was the monkey, 18 thought while rolling her eyes.

"Grandma, is mommy finished?"

"Hey, I'm not that old! Tell her, Trunks!"

"W-What? O-Oh yeah, she's not that old, Blair."

"... Daddy's lying."

"Hey, I'm not your dad!"

"But mommy said you were..."

"... Well, your 'mommy' was lying!"

"Daddy," was Blair's warning tone.

"Your daddy is in denial," 18 said from the bed, although she couldn't see anything because of the helmet, she knew that Trunks was close enough to see her smirk.

"Why you-"

"Denial, mommy?"

"It means he doesn't want to believe it, even if it's true."

"Daddy's a meanie!"

"No...! I'm not your dad!"

"Stop it, daddy! Mommy, make him stop!"

"Tch, like she can."

"Don't worry, Blair. Mommy will take care of daddy." 18 said, enjoying torturing Trunks immensely. Hey, if she was stuck with the kid then why not let Trunks suffer from it?

"Ohh, daddy's in trouble."

"Mom!"

"Don't include me in this, Trunks!"

"B-But... B-Bu-"

"Yeah, leave grandma alone!"

"You little... Arg... Who knew having a child in this house could turn out like this. Even you weren't this active when you were her age."

"Bulma," 18 said seriously. "What's really going on? Why did you call Trunks and Blair?"

"Oh, right. Blair, could you give us a few minutes alone?"

"But I wanna stay with mommy!"

"It's okay, Blair," 18 said from the bed. "I'll come get you when we're down."

"Oh, okay," she sounded like she was pouting. 18 heard her little feet stomping to the exit.

"After I'm done, we'll go for some ice cream, okay?" 18 said.

"Really?! Yay!" The girl promptly ran out of the room.

"Don't run down the corridors!" Bulma called.

18 sighed. "Jeez, that girl sure is a handful."

"Yeah and you seemed to have taken this mommy role quite calmly. She aint your pet, you know." If 18 was stronger than him Trunks would have received a super punch for such an accusation.

"She isn't my pet!" 18 hissed in anger.

"Okay, enough you two. 18, take off the helmet. We need to have a serious talk."

18 did as told, proceeding to glare at the Saiyan the moment she could.

"Call her a pet again and you'll regret it."

Trunks blinked at her. "What's gotten into you? You're not her mother - you said it yourself. You even told us you wanted nothing to do with a 'small meatbag like her'. We could have taken her to a place where she could be adopted, but you said no. Why? Well, that still escapes us and you still won't give a reason."

"..."

"So," Bulma interrupted, "I've analysed and compiled all the data I've gathered so far. Some of it is still unreadable garbage, but I found something interesting."

"So, why am I here?" Trunks asked, failing to hide his impatience.

"I'm getting to that. You'll eat your food when you get the chance." Bulma admonished.

Trunks grinned sheepishly.

Bulma fixed her gaze on 18.

"Do you remember anything about your past?"

That question caught her off guard. "What?" She had to make sure she heard right.

"Do you remember anything about your past?"

18 regarded the mother and son with a confused stare. "What does that have to do with your research?"

"I can understand your reluctance to reveal anything," Bulma said, "but your past has everything to do with what I'm about to tell you."

18 processed Bulma's words slowly. This seemed like big news and although 18 found herself curious, she was also marginally apprehensive.

"Well, I can't say I remember anything before I turned into a living weapon."

Bulma nodded her head. "I know why."

"You do?" 18 asked in surprise. Hell, even Trunks was curious.

"Yes, let's start from the beginning. When I started this research project my goal was to find alternative means to the dragon balls. As I got to know you and realised you weren't as bad as I originally thought, I started doing a side project to find out why. I had a hunch that something happened to turn you into what you were before Trunks nearly killed you the first time. I know for one that humans become monsters, they are not born as such."

18 listened silently, waiting for the biggest load of shit to hit the fan.

"I started looking for a program that might have been involved, coding that might have influenced you to kill people. You know what I found?"

Both Trunks and 18 shook their heads.

"Nothing!" Bulma chirped. "Absolutely no piece of code that could have controlled your behaviour."

"So, why do you seem so happy about it?" Trunks said, vaguely understanding what his mother was on about.

"Because, my dear boy, another hunch came. What if it wasn't a program, but a device instead?"

"Could we cut to the chase. I'm sure Blair is getting lonely waiting for her mommy," Trunks said teasingly, but was thoroughly surprised when he received no glare from 18.

She seemed to have dawned a look of concern.

"Right, I started studying all the mechanical devices in 18's body. At first, everything seemed in order. There didn't seem to be anything worthwhile. Until..."

Bulma took out the remote from her pocket.

18's eyes visibly widened when she stared at the device in Bulma's hand. She started to shake, her eyes staring frantically at Bulma, silently pleading to the mother.

The woman fixed her with an understanding look. "Never again."

She handed the remote to her son.

"W-What?" Trunks sputtered, surprised with his mother's actions.

"Destroy it, right now." Bulma ordered.

Trunks looked at his mother. "B-But."

Bulma shook her head. "It's much more trouble than you realise, believe me. You need to destroy it or risk reverting 18 into a killer again."

Trunks stared at her incedulously.

Bulma looked at 18 apologetically. "I'm very sorry, 18, but I did use the device on you one more time while you slept. It was to test out my theory and I apologise if it was uncomfortable."

18 nodded. "I don't remember feeling any pain. I didn't even know you used it on me again."

"What exactly is your theory?" Trunks asked, not sure if he should really destroy such a device.

"When I ran my test and activated the remote, I noticed my computer readings sky-rocket, but it wasn't just random data. It was 18's brain activity."

"Meaning what, that she was awake or something when you used the device?"

"No, it was a forced sleep. That wasn't significant. What was important was the device or devices I missed connected to her cerebral cortex, more specifically, near her occipital lobe and another device near her frontal lobe. Now, I won't go into detail of how the brain works and the four lobes of the cerebral cortex, but the occipital lobe is a part of the brain that sorely deals with vision and the frontal lobe deals with overall behaviour and thinking."

Jeez, if this had been a class, Trunks knew he would fail dismally.

18 didn't understand what Bulma was saying, but she had her suspicions of where Trunks' mother was heading in her explanation.

"I had my computer scan the data of those two devices alone, and eureka, I found my answer."

"What did you see?"

"The devices were small chips implanted into your brain. They were only able to activate using that remote. Their function was primarily to force you into sleep... But, they were also meant to slowly change your behaviour as well. Theoretically, Dr Gero must have designed them as behaviour manipulaters, so that when you slept or when the remote was activated, you would soon bend to his will and only seek destruction."

"My God," Trunks said in disgust. "The guy was really mad."

Bulma nodded in agreement, but soon frowned. "However, even with two chips connected to your cerebral cortex, you shouldn't have succumbed to... mind control per se. Mentally, your brain should have fought off or even rejected the outside influence. So with that in mind, I did some more digging. Remember when I told you that Dr Gero was a genius? Well, I wasn't lying."

"What do you mean, Bulma? Please, just tell us already."

"Okay, okay," Bulma waved, "I'll tell you... Jeez, you had to cut down my thunder."

"Mom," Trunks whined.

"Right! So, when I analysed the chips again, I noticed they operated on electrical impulses that mimicked the brain's. In doing so, the chips were able to link all four lobs of 18 cerebral cortex, creating a harmony of electrical impulses, and giving themselves access to the rest of the lobs through the connection. The chips had use of your temporal lob, the one that controls your dreams - meaning that even if you were asleep, the chips were still manipulating you."

18 just stared at Bulma in shock. What was she trying to say? What was she trying to tell her?

"If my hypothesis is correct, then your attack on humanity for all these years wasn't your fault but Dr Gero's alone."

Trunks frowned at his mother. "That's impossible. Mind control? 18 looks the same way she did all those years back; her behaviour is the same. It's difficult to believe that she could be manipulated to kill people in such a way."

"I thought you might say that. Hell, I even thought that, but when I looked at one of the chip's readings, I noticed that it was distorted, meaning the chip was damaged. With the knowledge that I received from studying 18, I deduced that the control over her brain had been broken."

"How could that have happened then?"

"Didn't you notice that ever since you nearly killed 18 the first time, she hasn't attacked or killed anyone? She hasn't even attempted to."

"She attempted to kill me."

"Because you provoked her."

"Could you guys stop talking about me like I'm not even here?"

"Oh, sorry," Bulma said, sheepish. "In any case, you're the reason, Trunks."

"How am I the reason?"

"When you fought and nearly killed her, you damaged the chip within her brain. Now, the chip was made with extensive amounts of bio and nano technology. So, if it ever broke to pieces, 18 wouldn't die from infections that outside materials would normally bring within the body."

Trunks struggled to take it all in. If his mother was right - and she was never known to be wrong - then 18, a monster that had caused so much wrong, was innocent? It was too much to take, and his visible shock was mirrored by the cyborg.

"I know it's a lot, you two, but 18, this is proof that you're not a monster; you just got stuck at the wrong place with the wrong people."

18 bowed her head, her hair masking her eyes. It... didn't make any sense. Why wouldn't she feel the changes if they were happening?.

"But... I was aware of everything I was doing."

"Because that's what the chips were designed for, to subtly control you in way that you would never notice. Although you were aware of things you were doing then, the fact remains that they might not have all been your own conscious decisions."

"I-I... I don't know what to say."

"Just take your time to process everything." Bulma reassured the distraught raven-head.

Time passed by as Trunks and 18 tried to accept Bulma's words. After a few more minutes, it was 18 who started.

"I understand, but even so, I'm not innocent."

"What do you mean?" Bulma curiously queried.

"I have blood on my hands that I can never wash away, and if I had to be honest with myself, I hated humanity even before I met Gero. What you've told me doesn't change the fact that I killed people, and I don't even feel guilty for it."

Trunks stared at the girl. She looked troubled, as if her honesty was like potent poison. He couldn't offer any comfort to her. Just a few minutes ago, she was Android 18, Dr Gero's abhorrent creation. Now...

What was she?

"Gero may have made me into what I am now, but I'm the one who has to live with it."

18 stood up.

"Oi, where are you going?" Bulma asked concernedly.

"I need time to myself." 18 didn't even look at them as she swiftly left.

Trunks watched her leave with a torn expression. He turned his gaze to his mother and looked down. "If this is really the case then that means 17 was innocent as well."

He looked at the remote in his hand, and crushed it without a second thought.

What the hell was he supposed to think now? Of course he still didn't like 18, but how far could he despise her when her predicament might not have been her fault?

Bulma was surprised at first, but soon scowled. "Trunks Briefs, look at me, right now."

Trunks looked at his mother. She could see how much troubled he was by the revelation, but she would not have her son think ill of himself.

"Whether you killed 17 or let him live in the same state as 18, there is no wrong decision between those two. 17 and 18 were destroying this world, and you were doing everything you can to protect it. We never could have known about Gero's work to help them, and if 17 and 18 continued to roam free, without your intervention, then I and the rest of this world would have probably died. You did good, Trunks. Don't you dare think that destroying 17 was wrong and blame yourself."

Trunks nodded, a bit of relief showing in his visage. "You're right. Thanks, mom."

Bulma smiled. "Anytime sweety."

"At least I can see why 18 is so sour. She doesn't have a family anymore and is all alone. Aside from you, I guess I can relate with her."

Bulma smirked and motioned for him to follow. When they arrived upstairs, she directed Trunks to the living room and pointed a finger.

"Does she look lonely to you?"

**"... Videl announced that she would soon be visiting the Orange region. President Lou Ko informed us that the Orange region will soon be the most productive of other lands and food supplies will be sent to any other area that is in need, if possible..."**

"This is so boring, mommy!" Blair whined.

"I know, but this is the only channel that's active at the moment." 18 sighed.

Blair pouted and looked around for something to play with. She spotted an open drill that was next to the TV. She made to grab it, and almost succeeded, but felt her body pulled back.

"Don't touch that!" 18 said, she was surprised with how faint-hearted she sounded.

"Why, mommy?" Blair asked inquisitively.

"That's dangerous, I don't ever want to see you near things like that, you here me?"

"Sorry," Blair said gloomily.

18's eyes soften and she sighed. She realised she might have been a little harsh. "Do you want to get some ice cream now?"

"Yes!" Blair screamed excitedly, her sadness long forgotten.

"Bulma," 18 called.

"Yeah?" Bulma answered in surprise, not expecting to be put on the spot.

"I'm taking Blair to the park. We'll be back soon."

"Enjoy yourselves," Bulma said with a smile.

"Could you get rid of all these sharp objects? It's not that I care or anything... It's just... they're in the way."

Even though 18 explanation didn't make any sense, Bulma smiled knowingly. "Sure, I'll put them in a safe place."

"Is daddy coming too, mommy?" Blair asked as she grabbed her mother's hand.

"... No way."

"Aww, mommy, why not?"

"He's got bad breath and talks too much."

Bulma had to stifle a laugh at the look on Trunks' face.

**Author's Notes: Thanks, Raos, for bringing the matter to my attention. I actually neglected to deal with the whole programming issue. I did not want to go with it though; it seemed like an over-used topic and I wanted this fic to stand out from the rest of the Trunks and 18 fics on this site. I'd ask if you guys could give me a little more reviews, just a little more! I'd really appreciate it!**


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